In February 1945, Lieut Colonel Kanazawa Asao succeeded Col. Kennosuke Noma as Chief of the Kempeitai in Hong Kong.
Keiji Makimura's memories of the Japanese surrender :
(Japanese) (English)
On the following day, August 31, as promised, I went to the flagship anchored in the harbor, accompanied by several dozen staff officers, including the Chief of Staff. In just one day, the atmosphere in the harbor had completely transformed. The Rising Sun flag had been lowered, replaced by the Union Jack, and the harbor was filled with majestic warships and transport ships of various sizes. The meeting room on the flagship was filled with a tense atmosphere as Lieutenant General Harcourt took the floor first. He sternly issued orders regarding the occupation of the Hong Kong region, disarmament of the Japanese military, and detention of Japanese troops and civilians. It was truly a situation of victors and vanquished. In hindsight, we had been too naive. We had prepared various conditions for negotiation and hope, but there was no room for such discussions. Even Mr. Gimson, who was usually mild-mannered, spoke with fervor, saying, "Among us, there is a man whom we cannot even exchange words with, let alone have him present here. That man is the director of the internment camp (Takandat) and the military police chief (Kanazawa)." He pointed sharply at the two of them, and the meeting became completely awkward. The meeting between the leaders of the two forces was over. That was all. The sense of being trapped with no way out in our defeated state was strongly felt at that moment.
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