SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 539

	WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas is pleased to 
honor the courageous men who kept themselves and their ideals
of freedom alive in the Philippines and survived the infamous 
Bataan Death March; and
	WHEREAS, Three days after the Japanese attacked the
United States at Pearl Harbor, Japanese forces invaded the 
Philippine Islands in Luzon; the American and Filipino forces, 
with dwindling supplies and a lack of reinforcements, were 
overwhelmed by the intense assault by the Japanese, and many 
American and Filipino soldiers became prisoners of war; and
	WHEREAS, After the surrender of Bataan, soldiers who
were captured were forced to begin the Bataan Death March on 
April 10, 1942; they marched 55 miles to San Fernando in 
140-degree temperature without food or water, and soldiers who 
later surrendered on Corregidor suffered a similar fate when
they were transferred to Bataan; and
	WHEREAS, Of the 76,000 prisoners who began the forced 
march, only 56,000 reached the prison camp alive, and many would 
later die from malnutrition and disease; some of the survivors
of the death march were packed into the holds of cargo ships
and sent to work as slave laborers in Japanese industries in 
Manchuria; and
	WHEREAS, In total, 37 percent of all Pacific Theater 
prisoners of war died; the men who were able to survive the 
torturous Bataan Death March demonstrated exceptional strength 
and tenacity, and they have the admiration and respect of their 
entire nation; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
79th Legislature, hereby pay tribute to the courageous soldiers 
who overcame overwhelming odds and survived the Bataan Death 
March; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for 
them as an expression of high esteem from the Texas Senate.
                                                                    Van de Putte




________________________________ 
    President of the Senate
 
    I hereby certify that the 
above Resolution was adopted by 
the Senate on April 6, 2005.



________________________________ 
    Secretary of the Senate



________________________________ 
     Member, Texas Senate