Justice Frank Murphy, former governor of the Philippines, will be the main dissenting Justice in “In Re Yamashita,” the appeal of Japanese General Tomoyuki Yamashita from his sentence of death imposed by a military tribunal.
Yamashita led the Japanese defense of the Philippines, and during that defense there were a number of atrocities committed against the Filipino people (most of which were not done under Yamashita’s direction). Regardless of the merits of the case, (which I will discuss 6 years hence if we’re still doing this), it’s interesting that the former governor of the Philippines will be the staunchest judicial defender of Yamashita.
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1940/feb40/f06feb40.htm
In Britain... At Euston Station, in London, a parcel bomb injures 4 people. Members of the IRA are reported to be responsible.
From London... The government produces a white paper on the Asamu Maru incident (January 21st). Also, pressure from the admiralty leads to new guidelines for BBC war reporting being agreed upon at Broadcasting House. From now on, the sinking of a small ship may be mentioned only once in a BBC news bulletin. Larger ships, like the Canadian Pacific freighter Beaverburn, sunk today, can be mentioned in consecutive bulletins. There is concern that the rising effectiveness of German U-boats, combined with zealous reporting, will give the impression that British losses are even greater than they are. Meanwhile, a nationwide campaign is launched to end war gossip, under the slogan “Careless Talk Costs Lives.”