Honolulu: A Pearl Harbor ceremony marks the 75th Commemoration of the End of World War II, a war that took the lives of over 4,05,000 US military personnel, on September 2, 2020.
The “Mighty Mo”, also named as USS Missouri, was the last battleship commissioned by the US and is best remembered as the site of the surrender of Japan, which ended World War II. The ship, which now rests on the hallowed waters of Pearl Harbor, gave the ultimate sacrifice in restoring peace to the world.
The USS Missouri Memorial Association along with the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum is recognising this historic milestone with several commemorative events from August 29, 2020, to September 3, 2020.
It will be possibly the last opportunity for many ageing US veterans to commemorate the day which will be limited to survivors of the war living in Hawaii because of coronavirus concerns.
Read | 75 years on: Japan remembers atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The plan before Friday had been to allow about 200 people, mostly WWII veterans, their families, and government officials, to gather on the battleship USS Missouri, which hosted the Japanese surrender on Sept. 2, 1945, in Tokyo Bay.
But an announcement made on Friday night said that those planning to fly into the state are no longer invited to protect the aging veterans — mostly in their 90s — from COVID-19.
Tony Varicella, the executive director of the 75th WWII Commemoration Committee, said in a phone interview Monday that the decision to limit attendance was a difficult one, but organizers are working on new ways to honor those left out in a virtual setting.
“We are going to do as many things as possible to integrate and name all of those folks who had hoped to be here,” Vericella said. “Everybody felt that the best and safest thing to do concerning World War II veterans coming into Hawaii from outside was just to engage them in the best possible way virtually.”
Read | UK marks 75th anniversary of VJ Day
Vericella said they were confident in local safety measures put in place for the mainland veterans once they arrived for a special flight from Oakland to Honolulu and thereafter, but the risks for those traveling from their hometowns to California was too great.
He said federal and local officials didn't want to take that particular chance.
In a story published early Friday, WWII veteran Jerry Pedersen, who was aboard the USS Missouri and watched the Japanese surrender, told The Associated Press he had been looking forward to attending the event for years, but he understood the risks.
“I’ve been told what I need to do to be responsible for myself but also toward others,” said Pedersen.
“I want to go back because that day, as much as I remember it, what happened, why we were there, the fact that it was the end of the realities of war and killing and all, it was the first day that I had to start answering, ‘What am I going to do with the rest of my life?’” Pedersen, who turned 95 last week, said.
He received the news on Sunday and later told the AP that he was disappointed, but understood why the decision was made.
"Well, I was very disappointed, yes. I was hoping to maybe see a friend or two," he said. “I think we’re going to go ahead and have a little thing for ourselves here, and I just want to share with at least my family and a couple of other folks some of the feelings that I was going to express when I got there."
Those feelings are complicated, Pedersen said, as he dedicated his life to peace after the war was over.
"War must not happen again," Pedersen said in remembering the words uttered by Gen. Douglas McArthur on the day the Japanese surrendered aboard the USS Missouri. But “we're still oscillating on many of the things that are necessary to bring us peace.”
Organizers now say fewer than 50 people, mostly veterans, and their families, will attend the Sept. 2 ceremony aboard the USS Missouri. The same health screenings and safety measures previously planned will be in place.
“We look forward to honouring our World War II veterans whose service demonstrated the selfless actions of the Greatest Generation," said Adm. Phil Davidson, Commander of the US-Indo-Pacific Command in a statement. "These heroes not only served to protect and defend our nation but liberated hundreds of millions of freedom-loving people, laying the foundation for the rules-based international order that exists to this day.”
Besides the actual anniversary ceremony, most events surrounding the commemoration have been cancelled.
