A decree was issued on Wednesday 18 February 1942: All Chinese males between the ages of 18 and 50 in Syonan-To (as Singapore was called during the Japanese Occupation) were to report to the various registration centres around the island. The decree embodied Japanese hatred for the Chinese, cultivated through years of Sino-Japanese war since 1937. Also, overseas Chinese had been quickly labelled anti-Japanese due to their contributions to war efforts in China. Thus began the Sook Ching operation, or the elimination of anti-Japanese elements.
This site, at the Hong Lim Complex, was one of the temporary registration centres of the Kempeitai, or the Japanese Military Police. It was used for screening anti-Japanese Chinese. The inspection methods were indiscriminate and non-standardised. Sometimes, hooded informants identified suspected anti-Japanese Chinese; other times, Japanese officers singled out “suspicious” characters at their whim and fancy. Those who survived the inspection walked with “examined” stamped on their faces, arms or clothing; others were issued a certificate. The unfortunate ones were taken to remote places like Changi and Punggol, and unceremoniously killed in batches.
The Japanese military authorities estimated that 6,000 were killed; local estimates believe the figure to be 50,000. The Sook Ching screening remains one of the most gruesome memories of the Japanese Occupation of Singapore.