[Government of the Occupied Territory] Noma Rensuke
Description:
Born:
19 February 1896
Died:
27 May 1947, Hong Kong
Pre-war:
Kennosuke Noma attended elementary school in Tokyo from 1902 to 1908, then studied at Tokyo Prefectural Fourth Middle School until graduating in 1913. After graduation, he immediately joined the military as a private second class, serving in the 3rd Infantry Regiment until November 1914, becoming a sergeant. In December 1914, he entered the Imperial Japanese Military Academy, returning to the 3rd Regiment after graduating in 1916. He subsequently served as a second lieutenant and first lieutenant in the same unit, and was sent to Tokyo to study English for a year in 1922, followed by two years of study abroad in the UK, Europe, and the US. In 1925, he returned to the Military Academy as an instructor for four years and was promoted to captain in 1927.
In 1929, he reached a turning point in his military career, entering the Army Military Police (Kempei) Academy in Tokyo and transferring to become a military police (Kempei) officer. After graduating in June 1930, he first joined the Yokohama Kempeitai and became a commander. At that time, the Kempeitai were under the jurisdiction of the Minister of War, managing not only military affairs but also security and intelligence work, wielding great power. During Japan's transition to military dictatorship in the 1930s, the Kempeitai played a significant role in suppressing dissent and opposing voices. Noma entered Tokyo Imperial University in 1931 to study law, graduating three years later, seemingly being groomed for cultivation. After graduation, he joined the Tokyo Zentsuji Kempeitai and was promoted to major. However, he was transferred back to the Kempeitai Academy as an instructor in 1935, where he remained until 1939. He became a lieutenant colonel in the Kempeitai in 1938, and although he had not served on the front lines and had only been studying or working as an instructor, his career seemed to be progressing smoothly. From August 1939 to August 1940, he became a Kempeitai commander in Shikoku, and then served at the Kempeitai headquarters in Seoul and Guangdong until the outbreak of thePacific War.
Wartime:
At the outbreak of war, he became the commander of the Kempeitai attached with the 38th Infantry Division. After the fall of Hong Kong, he served as the head of the Hong Kong Kempeitai, which was directly under the command of the Governor-General's Office. The Kempeitai had great power, not only maintaining order in the army but also arresting and interrogating civilians suspected of anti-Japanese activities. Even the brother of Chan Kwan-po, who played a role in the setting up of the Hong Kong Citizen Library for the Japanese, was once arrested by the military police.
From 1943, his Kempeitai uncovered intelligence networks of the Nationalists, Communists, and British in Hong Kong, arresting hundreds of citizens, including Allied civilians detained in Stanley, and Commonwealth military prisoners of war in Sham Shui Po, Argyle Street, and Ma Tau Chung. Most of those arrested were subjected to severe torture, with some tortured to death. Many of those arested were only relatives of intelligence personnel and were unaware of any intelligence work, while some citizens were wrongly implicated. In trials without juries, about a hundred intelligence personnel and civilians were found guilty by the Japanese military, with many sentenced to death. In the last year of the war, to implement forced evacuation, the Kempeitai arbitrarily rounded up citizens on the streets who were deemed to be unemployed vagrants, with some even sent to remote islands to starve to death. The head of the Civil Administration Department, Ichiki Yoshiyuki, also reported on the absurd behavior of the military police.
On the other hand, news of corruption within the Kempeitai in Hong Kong reached Tokyo, and with Japan losing ground in the war, Noma's era of unchallenged authority in Hong Kong finally came to an end. In November 1944, the Imperial Headquarters decided to place Hong Kong under the jurisdiction of the 23rd Army, and the Hong Kong Kempeitai was reorganized into the Hong Kong Police Force. Noma was relieved of his duties in January 1945 and sent back to Japan to serve temporarily as an instructor before being assigned as the head of the Kobe Kempeitai.
Post-war:
After Japan's surrender in August, the Kobe Kempeitai was disbanded. He was arrested by American forces in December and sent to prison, then transferred back to Hong Kong for trial. During the trial, the atrocities of the Kempeitai were widely reported in newspapers, and he was dubbed the "King of Killers". He insisted on his innocence, but was ultimately found guilty by the Hong Kong War Crimes Court for being responsible for the Kempeitai's atrocities against civilians. He was executed by hanging at Stanley Prison on May 27, 1947. Noma had a wife and two sons.
Born:
19 February 1896
Died:
27 May 1947, Hong Kong
Pre-war:
Kennosuke Noma attended elementary school in Tokyo from 1902 to 1908, then studied at Tokyo Prefectural Fourth Middle School until graduating in 1913. After graduation, he immediately joined the military as a private second class, serving in the 3rd Infantry Regiment until November 1914, becoming a sergeant. In December 1914, he entered the Imperial Japanese Military Academy, returning to the 3rd Regiment after graduating in 1916. He subsequently served as a second lieutenant and first lieutenant in the same unit, and was sent to Tokyo to study English for a year in 1922, followed by two years of study abroad in the UK, Europe, and the US. In 1925, he returned to the Military Academy as an instructor for four years and was promoted to captain in 1927.
In 1929, he reached a turning point in his military career, entering the Army Military Police (Kempei) Academy in Tokyo and transferring to become a military police (Kempei) officer. After graduating in June 1930, he first joined the Yokohama Kempeitai and became a commander. At that time, the Kempeitai were under the jurisdiction of the Minister of War, managing not only military affairs but also security and intelligence work, wielding great power. During Japan's transition to military dictatorship in the 1930s, the Kempeitai played a significant role in suppressing dissent and opposing voices. Noma entered Tokyo Imperial University in 1931 to study law, graduating three years later, seemingly being groomed for cultivation. After graduation, he joined the Tokyo Zentsuji Kempeitai and was promoted to major. However, he was transferred back to the Kempeitai Academy as an instructor in 1935, where he remained until 1939. He became a lieutenant colonel in the Kempeitai in 1938, and although he had not served on the front lines and had only been studying or working as an instructor, his career seemed to be progressing smoothly. From August 1939 to August 1940, he became a Kempeitai commander in Shikoku, and then served at the Kempeitai headquarters in Seoul and Guangdong until the outbreak of thePacific War.
Wartime:
At the outbreak of war, he became the commander of the Kempeitai attached with the 38th Infantry Division. After the fall of Hong Kong, he served as the head of the Hong Kong Kempeitai, which was directly under the command of the Governor-General's Office. The Kempeitai had great power, not only maintaining order in the army but also arresting and interrogating civilians suspected of anti-Japanese activities. Even the brother of Chan Kwan-po, who played a role in the setting up of the Hong Kong Citizen Library for the Japanese, was once arrested by the military police.
From 1943, his Kempeitai uncovered intelligence networks of the Nationalists, Communists, and British in Hong Kong, arresting hundreds of citizens, including Allied civilians detained in Stanley, and Commonwealth military prisoners of war in Sham Shui Po, Argyle Street, and Ma Tau Chung. Most of those arrested were subjected to severe torture, with some tortured to death. Many of those arested were only relatives of intelligence personnel and were unaware of any intelligence work, while some citizens were wrongly implicated. In trials without juries, about a hundred intelligence personnel and civilians were found guilty by the Japanese military, with many sentenced to death. In the last year of the war, to implement forced evacuation, the Kempeitai arbitrarily rounded up citizens on the streets who were deemed to be unemployed vagrants, with some even sent to remote islands to starve to death. The head of the Civil Administration Department, Ichiki Yoshiyuki, also reported on the absurd behavior of the military police.
On the other hand, news of corruption within the Kempeitai in Hong Kong reached Tokyo, and with Japan losing ground in the war, Noma's era of unchallenged authority in Hong Kong finally came to an end. In November 1944, the Imperial Headquarters decided to place Hong Kong under the jurisdiction of the 23rd Army, and the Hong Kong Kempeitai was reorganized into the Hong Kong Police Force. Noma was relieved of his duties in January 1945 and sent back to Japan to serve temporarily as an instructor before being assigned as the head of the Kobe Kempeitai.
Post-war:
After Japan's surrender in August, the Kobe Kempeitai was disbanded. He was arrested by American forces in December and sent to prison, then transferred back to Hong Kong for trial. During the trial, the atrocities of the Kempeitai were widely reported in newspapers, and he was dubbed the "King of Killers". He insisted on his innocence, but was ultimately found guilty by the Hong Kong War Crimes Court for being responsible for the Kempeitai's atrocities against civilians. He was executed by hanging at Stanley Prison on May 27, 1947. Noma had a wife and two sons.
Sources: WO 235/999
