It was an emotional and historic day at Adelup, as the very first war claims checks were handed out to survivors more than 75 years after the end of the Japanese occupation.

"We are here today because of the wisdom of our manamko'," Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero said during the presentation. "Because of the strength of our manmako'. Because of the courage of our manamko. And when I knew that it would take a while to get what they deserve, I said no way in Hell."

Along with the recipients, also in attendance were some of the people who helped pave the way for the payments over the years, or their family members. Among them, former congressman Robert Underwood who spoke about two milestones, during his watch: the creation of the War Claims Commission, the memorial wall at the Asan Bay overlook which includes the names of nearly 16,000 people from Guam who died or suffered atrocities during the war. He credits former Sen. George Bamba for his help, and whose mother the late Sen. Cecilia Bamba was instrumental in the early push for war claims.

"We worked hard on making sure that we got those names up there, and everybody kept saying you're just trying to sneak those names in because you're trying to validate war claims," Underwood said. "I said, 'ooh you found us out.'"

Former Guam Del. Madeliene Bordallo sponsored the law that authorized the war claims payments through Section 30 funding.

"This is a day that's gonna go down in history," she said. "It brings us a step closer to recognizing our manmako' for the atrocities that they endured during Guam's occupation in World War II."

And the local war claims bill sponsor Speaker Tina Barnes who says she's not done yet. A petition drive has been launched to urge Congress to reopen the claims applications to those who didn't make the first go around.

"I'm just asking please don't give up hope, because we will try our very best," she said.

User: KUAM News To: link