Kokichi Nishamura
Japanese Army, 144th Infantry Regiment

Wartime Service
Nishamura was a grenadier (knee mortar) in the 4th Squad of the 5th Company of the 2nd Battalion of the 144th Infantry Regiment of the Japanese Army. He landed at Gona on July 29, 1942 and made it all the way to Ioribaiwa and back to Giruwa at Sanananda. He escaped with his unit up the coast on January 12, 1943.

Search For War Dead
He left his family and life in Japan to move to Popondetta in the 1990s - 2000 in order to devote himself to finding the remains of his comrades and sending their bones back to Japan. Also he works with local villagers and makes donations to their infrastructure. Sometime after 2000, he retired back to Japan but continued to travel to PNG.

References
Field Guide to the Kokoda Track
Mentions Nishamura: "The author traveled 80 kilometers north of Tokyo where he lives with his daughter in a small house in a rural village. He is described as "Extremely alert, very friendly and willing to talk about any subject".

Boneman of Kokoda
Book by Charles Happell with Kokichi Nishamura

The Digger of Kokoda
A Japanese soldier fought the Allies, then battled his government to honour not only mates but all the war dead in New Guinea. by Justin Norrie Sunday Morning Herald, April 3, 2008

Blueprint of a river city fantasy
Post Courier, Date unknown

Think Positive About Developments
Post Courier, Date unknown

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