Haji Nordin Kadir & Hjh Miah Jaudin-Part 3

Atok's Education

He went to Sekolah Sungai Dua, a Malay school for standard 1-5. Students who did well after Std 5 were selected for further training for 3 years after which they could enroll as guru pelatih. Some, after, std 5, went for Special Malay Class (now Remove Class) to learn English. Atok's father refused to allow Atok to attend SMC for fear of "masuk api neraka" for learning English.

When he was in the second year of the 3-year further training, the Japanese landed. It was 1941. Being one of the better students, he was picked by the Japanese to train for 3 years in Singapore. The place was called Kaigun Kokusho, a aircraft training facility in Seletar. After 3 years training at the facility, students became pilots I suppose. They were given uniforms and accomodation.

These were turbulent times with Allied B29s zooming past and running to take cover. In 1944, after the second bombing of Seletar, Atok and a friend from Rasah negeri Sembilan, evacuated the centre and hitched a ride in a cargo train back to Gemas. He was around 17 years of age at that time. His nascent pilot training died a premature death with that fateful train ride.

3812 is significant to him and many others who lived through the Japanese occupation. 3 years, 8 months and 12 days-that was the length of the Japanese occupation of this country.

n.b. A wikipedia search showed that Kaigun Kokusho is also the name of the Japanese naval fighterplane. Although it was adequately designed it lacked the climb-rate and high altitude performance to successfully intercept the American-made B29s.

Wan's Education

She went to sekolah kebangsaan until Std 5.The Japanese came when she was in Std 5. Her teacher would teach the students how to greet the Japanese when they came. Wan was big for her age so her teacher advised her to stop schooling since the Japanese were going to take away the bigger girls to turn into concubines.

She was also a good student at school. After she stopped schooling, in the mornings she would climb up a tall langsat tree behind the kampung house which allowed her to see the students lining up for their classes.

She and her mother Siah tilled the padi fields and to supplement their income, she picked daun rumbia to weave into atap roofs which she sold for 20 sen apiece. Siah also had 2 acres of land with rubber trees.