6 January 1943

At Sanananda, the Japanese rice supplies are almost gone. From tomorrow, the defenders will lose even their meagre 60 grams a day. Morale is at al all-time low and friction increases between the lower ranks and thei officers ass many soldiers believe their officers have secret supplies.

In his diary Private Wada Kiyoshi writes: “All officers … eat relatively well. The majority are starving. The higher officers are not starving. This is indeed a deplorable state of affairs for the Imperial Army.”