Page 169 - The Rough Guide to Myanmar (Burma)

ThanbyuzayaT and around SoutheaStern MyanMar 167
THE DEATH RAILWAY
When Japan seized control of burma in 1942, the supplies and troops needed to maintain
their forces had to be shipped in by sea. The battles of the Coral Sea and Midway that
spring reduced Japanese naval strength, and the long voyage to burma was thought to
leave the precious fleet vulnerable. an alternative was required, and the Burma–Siam
railway – a route previously surveyed by the british government of burma in the 1880s
– was revived. In July 1942, construction started simultaneously from ban Pong in Thailand
and Thanbyuzayat in burma.
The Japanese aimed to complete the 420km-long railway in just fourteen months, despite
the difficulties posed by the mountainous, jungle-covered terrain. It is estimated that 60,000
allied PoWs and 180,000 rōmusha (asian civilian labourers, primarily from Indonesia) worked
on the project, hacking through the Tenasserim hills with primitive tools. by the time the
railway was completed in october 1943, over 12,000 PoWs and around 90,000 rōmusha had
died from maltreatment, sickness and starvation.
In the end, the railway was in operation for just over twenty months before an Allied
bombing raid put it out of action. a 130km-long stretch is still in use in Thailand, but inside 3
Myanmar the tracks have been slowly reclaimed by the rainforest. The Myanmar government
periodically announces plans to rebuild the railway, but as yet this hasn’t moved beyond the
drawing table.

Thanbyuzayat
• Buses to Thanbyuzayat (hourly 6am–4pm; 2hr) run from Lower Main Rd beside Mawlamyine’s market
THANBYUZAYAT, 64km south of Mawlamyine, was the end point of World War II’s
infamous “Death Railway” (see box above), constructed by the Japanese using forced
labour at appalling human cost.

Thanbyuzayat War Cemetery
• Daily during daylight hours • Free
The beautiful Thanbyuzayat War Cemetery is a moving memorial to the Death Railway.
A kilometre west of the clocktower, the cemetery contains the graves of 3771
Commonwealth and Dutch soldiers, who died during the construction of the railway
and in air raids following its completion. Bronze plaques, often with heart-breaking
inscriptions from bereaved mothers and wives, mark each grave.

Kyaikkami

Some 85km south of Mawlamyine, the tidy little coastal town of KYAIKKAMI juts into
the murky waters of the Gulf of Mottama. The British annexed this town after the
First Anglo-Burmese War, naming it Amherst, and it became a popular seaside resort
for Mawlamyine’s expatriate and Anglo-Burmese community – even today, there are
still one or two bright colonial buildings around town. Though the muddy waters
surrounding the little beach won’t appeal to travellers, and there is no accommodation
licensed to accept foreigners, the town fills up at weekends with fun-seeking Burmese
people from nearby areas.
Yele Paya
• Daily dawn–dusk • Free
Today, most visitors come to Kyaikkami to visit Yele Paya, a picturesque
seaside pagoda situated 1km from town at the tip of a small peninsula. Local
Buddhists believe that the pagoda, reached along a covered causeway, contains a
Buddha image that floated here from Sri Lanka, as well as several hair relics. These
treasures are covered with an unusual tiered shrine, which is encircled by rows of
Mandalay-style Buddhas. Note that women are not allowed to enter the main

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