Kokoki Butai – Hong Kong Japanese Army Marine Unit during the occupation, WW2

HF: The website contains many British Army Aid Group (BAAG 英軍服務團) reports sent from Hong Kong during the Japanese occupation, World War Two.

Many of these concern HK shipyards. And some of these include the name Kokoki Butai. I asked our translator of Japanese, Kwong Chi Man, about this term.

KCM: Kokoki Butai was the Hong Kong branch of the “Army Marine Unit” (rikugun senpaku butai) – basically the little navy owned by the Imperial Japanese Army. Kokuki was the surname of the commander of the HK branch, Col. Kokoki Tomoyuki 此木友之. It controlled all the shipbuilding facilities on Kowloon side. The navy controlled everything on Hong Kong Island.

Further information:

• For general information about the Elizabeth Ride collection, her father Sir Lindsay Ride, and the British Army Aid group during WW2 a very useful introduction is through http://gwulo.com/node/13968
• The BAAG papers are kept at the  Hong Kong Heritage Project
• https://www.hongkongheritage.org/Pages/FindingAids/LibraryCollection/Elizabeth_M_Ride_Collection.aspx

The Index contains many articles using BAAG reports from WW2. And about industry in HK during that time.