Vico E. Henriques, an interview by Daniel McCool, November 9, 2004: Saving the legacy tape no. 729

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ADDENDUM Some thoughts of being a soldier. When I ~as called ~p ~June of 1950 I was a child of WWII and train d dilig ntly · arts ofbe.mg a soldter. (infantryman). As mentioned during the intervi w I w onv from Artillery to Engmeer due to then current requirements during my travel om th to Korea. I experienced a fire fight within two days of arriving in Korea on the train ride from Pusan Replacement Depot to the railhead at Chunchon where I was to be trucked to my new unit. It was a brief, but furious exchange of fire between some enemy snipers and the passengers on the train (in the middle of the night). It brought home instantly that this was no longer training, but real combat. Luckily none of us were injured and I doubt that we did any damage to the snipers, but the game had changed. Shortly after joining my unit the reality of war became painfully real. I had to kill an enemy soldier. I had been raised in the Christian tradition, i.e. Thou shalt not kill. I was not alone in wrestling with the apparent dilemma of moral dictate and physical necessity or duty. In the first half of my stay in Korea the action remained hot and sustained. Later, as the Cease Fire negotiations wobbled along we turned more to constructive activities, as opposed to active (destructive) combat. I did what was called for by the military requirements of the situation and engaged the enemy with explosive devices, frrearms, and hand to hand combat with knives or only hands. I was a good soldier and effective in my actions (I'm still here- They aren't). I take pride in my actions as a soldier, but I still have troubled feelings about the morality of my actions as a human being. I have reread history from a new perspective and question some of the interpretations of rectitude for one side or the other, both claiming to have God are their side or declaring the need to rid the world of oppression, such oppres~ion being defmed by combatants I still am amazed how easily I could become a competent killer, with almost no compunction and then return to civilian life and try to behave as if no~hing ?ad . happened. It will always be at the back of my mind, but I h~ve long smce gtven up trymg to rationalize or understand it. It is what it was - and I survived.