A former U.S. prisoner of war has filed a class-action lawsuit with a U.S. federal court against the Japanese government seeking compensation of $1 trillion for suffering caused by the Imperial Japanese Army, court officials said Thursday.
The lawsuit, "Rosen vs. the People of Japan," was filed Tuesday, according to a spokeswoman for the U.S. District Court in Chicago.
According to Thursday's Internet edition of the Chicago Tribune, the lead plaintiff, retired Army Col. Melvin H. Rosen, is seeking $1 trillion in reparations on behalf of an estimated 435,000 Americans killed or wounded during the 1941-1945 war in the Pacific.
Rosen was held prisoner in the Philippines by the Japanese army for 31/2 years after surviving the infamous Bataan Death March. Thousands of prisoners died during the 110-km forced march.