Far Eastern Liaison Office (FELO) Leaflets

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Collection, 46 folders, 5 albums The Far Eastern Liaison Office (FELO) Leaflet collection comprises approximately 500 propaganda leaflets were created and dropped in areas of Papua, New Guinea, Netherlands East Indies, Malaya and Singapore by the Far Eastern Liaison Office (FELO) during the Second World War. From November 1942 until its dissolution in September 1945, FELO estimated that it produced over 69 million leaflets in seven languages. These leaflets consist of three basic types: surrender leaflets, news bulletins, and nostalgia leaflets, and were part of a wider campaign to weaken fighting spirit among the Japanese and build morale among local peoples. The leaflets in the collection often state that any surrendered troops will be treated fairly, and that such action will enable them to take part in the post-war rebuilding of Japan. This is often accompanied by news of how badly the war is progressing for the Japanese. Mention is often made of favourable actions by the Allies in Europe, and the corresponding fortunes of the Axis powers. Nostalgic appeals to the traditional Japanese lifestyle aimed to breakdown the Japanese resolve to pursue the war effort to a futile end. Most of the leaflets included diagrams, photographs, and in some cases cartoons.