Peace Park at Layang-Layangan is situated close to Surrender Point, the
place where the 32nd Japanese Southern Army surrendered to the 9th Australian
Imperial Forces on 9 September 1945. The Japanese arrived at Labuan on January
1, 1942, less than a month after they had started their campaign in Malaya at
Kota Bharu. They took formal possession of the island on the 3rd, having faced
no resistance.
The Peace Park was built as a memorial and also as a renunciation of the
horrors of war. It is dominated by the memorial mound which is surrounded by
landscaped gardens and pavilions. Small ponds with stone bridges and park seats
are all Japanese-inspired. A bronze plaque commemorating the surrender is
mounted on a stone slab near the entrance.
WATER VILLAGE
A trip to Labuan would not be complete if one does not visit Kampung Air
(Water Village). There are two main water villages on Labuan - Kampung Bebuloh
and Kampung Patau-Patau which are mainly inhabited by Brunei Malays.
The houses here, which are built right at the water's edge, are made of
wood and sit on high stilts, joined together with a maze of wooden walkways.
Visitors are free to roam around the vicinity of the water villages and
observe the humble lifestyle of a predominantly fishing community.
Almost every house owner here has his own boat. The houses can be quite
large and they all have cool decorated verandahs.
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