Original subtitles

Narrator: A facility in rural england

Where information was on A need-to-know basis.

Wawro: we've got a compound Within the larger compound,

Strongly built, To contain something

That was very valuable, Volatile, dangerous.

Narrator: An overgrown and confusing site Found in the woods of arkansas.

Auerbach: there are fences And cages everywhere.

Auerbach: there are fences And cages everywhere.

Obviously, this place has been Out of use for some time.

And that begs The question,

Was whatever Was being kept here released,

Or did it break out?

Narrator: and the town that Fell victim to a catastrophe,

And then a cover up.

Nusbacher: this place Was populated so briefly

That it doesn't even Leave a trace.

It's so new that It doesn't even appear on maps.

Narrator: Decaying relics.

Ruins of lost worlds.

Sites haunted by the past.

Their secrets Waiting to be revealed.

-- captions by vitac -- Www.Vitac.Com

Captions paid for by Discovery communications

Captions paid for by Discovery communications

In britain, on the edge Of rendlesham forest,

Is a facility That would be hard to miss.

Well, it looks like The biggest runway

I've ever seen In my life.

And it's set down In this beautiful,

Bucolic english Countryside.

Bell: But this is no airport.

This looks more like A military installation.

This looks more like A military installation.

Narrator: Rows of uniform bunkers And hangars populate the site.

But among them Are other structures

Whose purpose Is obscured.

Wawro: it has a really Otherworldly feel.

Looking at this building,

It's very advanced "Jetsons," space age

In look and appearance.

There's this one hangar With big doors at the front,

And this strange protrusion At the back.

And this strange protrusion At the back.

Narrator: and tucked away On the edge of the site

Is a high-security area,

Designed to keep people out, And to keep something in.

Bell: it has its own high Fences, topped with barbed wire.

And most disturbing Is the watchtower.

Something was kept In here

That they didn't want people To know about.

Narrator: 40 years ago, On a winter's evening,

Something happened that made This place hit the headlines.

In december 1980, people based Here on this facility

Saw this strange light In the sky.

A squad left the compound,

And followed the lights Into rendlesham forest.

The reports say that They followed the lights

Into a clearing, And found, well, nothing --

Apart from the imprints Of three evenly spaced circles

In the forest mud.

Narrator: After the rendlesham incident,

This site came to The public's attention.

This is bentwaters Air force base,

Home to britain's raaf.

Wawro: the raaf -- The royal air force --

Is the oldest organized Air force in the world.

Certainly, The raaf was critical

In winning The battle of britain.

Narrator: bentwaters was secured With a 10-foot-high fence,

But in one corner, security Was taken to the next level.

But in one corner, security Was taken to the next level.

Graham gilbert Has been given access.

Gilbert: this area here is Called "The entrapment area."

Another sliding gate Would close behind.

Security personnel from the Building here would come out,

Check the security passes Of the occupants.

Bell: When a secure military base Has an extra-high-security area,

Bell: When a secure military base Has an extra-high-security area,

You know they've got Something big in there,

Something that goes well Beyond the pay grade

Of your ordinary soldier.

Narrator: The british armed forces Are no stranger to covert ops,

But small details suggest That someone else was in charge.

Bentwaters was under The command

Of the united states Air force.

Of the united states Air force.

The u.S. Air force Came to bentwaters in 1951,

And they fashioned this into One of their biggest air bases

In the european space.

Gilbert: so sinister, With the crows and the rooks.

And knowing what was stored In these bunkers here

Is really sort of Spine-chilling.

Bell: Inside the compound is a row Of short bunker-like buildings.

Bell: Inside the compound is a row Of short bunker-like buildings.

At one end of that corridor Is a watchtower

Patrolled by Armed soldiers.

And at the other end Is a pillbox,

With holes For more guns.

This is A killing field,

Clearly, Whatever went on in here

Was supposed to be Hush hush.

*

*

This is one of the Nuclear storage bunkers

In the weapons Storage area.

And each bunker is covered In a layer of thick earth

That would suppress any Accidental explosion, as well.

Scott: The united states air force Came to bentwaters in a time

When tensions were rising Between nato and soviet states

In eastern europe.

The mission was To bring bentwaters

Up to new nato standards,

Up to new nato standards,

So the day that war With russia came,

Bentwaters Would be ready.

Narrator: Officially, the united states Neither confirms nor denies

That there were nuclear weapons At bentwaters.

But weapons Of mass destruction

Weren't the only secret Kept on this site.

On the eastern edge is a hangar With a protrusion out the back.

On the eastern edge is a hangar With a protrusion out the back.

It's a long metal tube That must be, like --

I don't know -- 10 feet high.

Wawro: Funny-looking building

Clearly centered Around this court

For the expelling os something, Or allowing something in.

Narrator: this building Was called "The hush house."

It was integral to bentwaters' Covert operations.

*

Narrator: in southern england is A former world war 11 air base

Which became a key component in America's nuclear war strategy.

To help bring bentwaters Up to code,

They built new infrastructure, Like the building

With the strange, slanted walls That still stands today.

There's nothing like it Anywhere else on the base.

There's nothing like it Anywhere else on the base.

Gilbert: This building was used by one Of the maintenance squadrons,

And also the crews Could enjoy a cup of coffee

Or something to eat in here, As well, in comfort.

Narrator: The crews at bentwaters

Had to be in a constant state Of readiness

For a very Dangerous mission.

Wawro: in the event Of world war iii,

There is supposed to Get in their jets,

Fly their missions Into europe,

Fly their missions Into europe,

Hit the soviet targets With nuclear weapons.

Pilots were supposed to eject Near the coast,

Either on the european side Or the british side,

Come down, land, bury themselves Under soil for three days

To protect themselves From nuclear fallout.

Bell: the plan was that A friendly submarine

Would then Pick them up.

But the soldiers knew that, Once the bombs started dropping,

The chances were very slim that There'd be anybody left at all.

The chances were very slim that There'd be anybody left at all.

They knew it was A one-way trip.

Narrator: In its operational history,

Bentwaters housed 11 american squadrons.

And at the eastern end,

Certain goings-on Were kept under wraps.

One thing that The u.S. Air force

May not have considered When they came to rural england

Was that there were limits on How much noise they could make,

Was that there were limits on How much noise they could make,

And when.

A law prevented The air force

Testing their engines at night Or on sundays.

The hush house was designed To let them test in secret.

Wawro: so, they'd bring him Into the hush house,

They'd work on the engines, They'd test him here,

And there would be no sound To disturb the sleep

Of the surrounding Civilians.

Inside here, when an engine Was running full throttle,

Would be unbearable.

Would be unbearable.

There's a special Control room

Where the operators Sat behind thickened glass,

To protect them From the sound and the heat.

Narrator: today, the secrets Of the hush house are known,

But rumors persist that some Information is still classified.

Graham gilbert Was living in the area

Graham gilbert Was living in the area

When something happened That would go down in history

As britain's roswell.

I was 18 at the time.

Gilbert: I first heard about This incident

When it was in The local newspaper.

Security forces Went out to investigate,

And they reported Seeing strange lights

And things zooming about In the sky.

Bell: for 40 years, Some of those soldiers

Have been unable to explain What happened.

Have been unable to explain What happened.

And they're convinced that They had a close encounter.

However, there is another theory That's still out of this world.

It's just not Extra-terrestrial.

Wawro: nasa's apollo program In the '60's and '70's,

They typically landed The splashdown

In the caribbean Or in the pacific ocean.

But there were Contingencies that,

If they splashed down In the north sea

If they splashed down In the north sea

Or the mediterranean, They had to have facilities

To recover the astronaut In that case.

So, right up until 1975,

They kept a prop capsule On standby in great britain,

So crews in britain could train In recovering a capsule.

Bell: now, one theory is that They used a helicopter

To fly the capsule Over bentwaters,

But they lost Control of it,

And had to ditch it In the forest,

Which might explain Those strange circular

Which might explain Those strange circular

Imprints in the ground.

Narrator: a dummy apollo capsule Might fit the evidence,

But there are still Many questions

About the rendlesham incident Which have gone unanswered.

The american air force Was stationed

At bentwaters For 42 years.

In 1993, the air base Was decommissioned.

In 1993, the air base Was decommissioned.

The cold war was over.

Wawro: much of the air power That we were going to deploy

In a third world war Against the soviet union

Was based at bentwaters.

This was the world we lived in For so long.

May we never live In this world again.

*

Narrator: in northern arkansas Is a wholly unusual scene

Lost in the depths Of the countryside.

Lost in the depths Of the countryside.

Bell: this place is way out In the woods.

It's overgrown.

There are vines creeping All over the place,

Swallowing it up.

Auerbach: as you travel further Into the trees,

You see the beginning Of the track,

And you start to get maybe Some clue

Of what was Going on here.

Meigs: at one point, It goes up pretty high --

Meigs: at one point, It goes up pretty high --

About 30 feet Off the ground.

So, somebody put a lot Of engineering ambition

Into this project.

Narrator: Strewn all around are the last Twisted remains of the site.

And together, They paint a strange picture.

Bell: there are lots of metal Grills, bars, fences, and cages.

It's like a prison Lost in the jungle.

Auerbach: you're out In the woods.

You're miles from The nearest town.

You're miles from The nearest town.

No one's gonna Hear you scream out here.

Narrator: so, who or what was Being locked up in the cages?

And what catastrophe would cause This site's downfall?

It all looks A little ramshackle,

So it makes you think, Whatever was in these cages,

Did they stay In the cages?

What if they got out?

*

Narrator: In the rural surroundings Of northern arkansas

Is a collection of metal cages And enclosures.

But far from being hidden away, The entrance to the site

Was actually designed To catch the eye of passersby.

Auerbach: so, if you were just Driving past,

You see what looks like A rest stop.

But this was a rest stop Like no other in the world.

But this was a rest stop Like no other in the world.

Narrator: rick montgomery Grew up not too far from here,

And can imagine Just how strange a sight

This must have been For unsuspecting travelers.

Montgomery: well, when you Would arrive here,

And come around That corner,

Almost a 90 degree curve,

The first thing you'd see Are these cages.

And in this cage, here, I'm told, was a lion.

That would get Your attention.

You'd begin to look in here. And here is a huge black bear.

You'd begin to look in here. And here is a huge black bear.

Everybody's now wondering, "What is this place?"

Narrator: for those who let Their curiosity

Get the better of them, A ride upon a miniature railway

Took them through a dark tunnel Before all was revealed.

Montgomery: We'd come out of the tunnel, And we hit this track.

And as you make the curve, You look to your left,

And there's giraffes.

And their heads Are looking you in the face,

Because giraffes Are so tall,

So they're almost level With you.

So they're almost level With you.

Narrator: this strange Roadside wonderland,

Once filled with life,

Was hallie's rest stop And zoo.

When it opened, This place was a huge hit.

Auerbach: people came in droves. They loved it.

People would specifically travel Just to this site

From hundreds Of miles away.

But what I like to imagine Is the incredible surprise

Of people Who didn't know about this.

They'd just pull over the car, Expecting a normal rest stop.

They'd just pull over the car, Expecting a normal rest stop.

And ta-da, you've got Hallie's zoo, as well.

What an experience.

Narrator: Opened in the early '70's, And named after its owner,

Hallie orman,

Visitors would come face to face With an exciting mix of animals,

Some more exotic Than others.

There was every kind of animal Local to the area --

Foxes, wolves, deer.

Just every kind of animal That you can think of.

That's local to arkansas Was here in the zoo,

That's local to arkansas Was here in the zoo,

Plus elephants, giraffes,

Of course the orangutan, Bear, lion.

Narrator: but today, rusted, Broken, and weathered,

This site appears outdated In more ways than one.

You know, a really State-of-the-art zoo

Needs a full-time Veterinary staff.

It needs people really trained To take care of these animals.

And you see, in modern zoos, They at least make an attempt

To create habitats That are more like the habitats

To create habitats That are more like the habitats

These animals live in In the wild,

Instead of just confining them To tiny cages

Where they go wild With boredom.

This was one of a number Of small zoos

That dotted the country At the time.

And regulation of them Was relatively light,

So there was a little bit Of a wild west feel to it.

Narrator: regardless of The approach taken, however,

Safety was always A priority.

Safety was always A priority.

Wild animals are exactly that -- They are wild.

And whenever you take them On even a single one,

Let alone the numbers Required in a zoo,

You're taking on A huge responsibility.

Narrator: this was something The management was reminded of

When one resident decided They'd had enough

Of sitting alone In their cage.

Montgomery: this cage Is super interesting.

It's big metal because, Originally,

There was a bear in here.

Then, they put in here An orangutan.

Then, they put in here An orangutan.

He was real smart.

He knew how to undo his cage, So that he could get out.

And he would Get out of his cage,

And go walking around, Go walking across the street.

That's where The manager was.

And he knew him.

Narrator: luckily, no harm Was done by the orangutan

Masterminding His own escape.

But what if it had been A more dangerous animal?

With this kind of business, if An accident does occur on site,

With this kind of business, if An accident does occur on site,

The likelihood is It's going to be serious.

Narrator: As time would tell,

The orangutan wasn't to be The only escapee from hallie's.

And next time, It would be a predator

That would have the locals Running scared.

But perhaps this place should Never have been opened at all.

Now, there are plenty of laws And regulations

Regarding exotic animals In the u.S.

Regarding exotic animals In the u.S.

But -- and this is true of a lot Of activities in the states --

There's a huge amount Of variation,

And the laws vary State by state,

And in some cases, County by county.

What's surprising is that, Where this zoo was located,

It was actually illegal To own exotic animals.

Narrator: whether that law Was known at the time or not,

Things would soon Be brought to a head.

Things would soon Be brought to a head.

In the late '70's,

Hallie sold the zoo To a new owner.

And in 1979,

The zoo made the headlines For all the wrong reasons.

Montgomery: Well, this is the cage that got The biggest story to tell.

This was the cage Where the lion was kept.

The lion was sheltering in a zoo All of his life.

It was -- never been out In the wild.

But one day, Somebody accidentally

Left the cage door open, And the lion escaped.

Left the cage door open, And the lion escaped.

Narrator: With a lion on the loose, The locals were up in arms.

But the story would have A surprising ending.

*

Narrator: buried in the woods Of arkansas are the busted cages

Of an old roadside zoo.

In 1979, The site got more attention

Than it had Bargained for.

A lion had escaped, And was on the prowl.

Bell: there are farms all around This place, with livestock,

And now, you've got a predator Out there on the loose.

And now, you've got a predator Out there on the loose.

Meigs: it was spotted A number of times.

The people in the area Were pretty freaked out

That there was a wild african Lion roaming their backyards.

Narrator: But luckily, in the end,

It turned out They needn't have worried.

There is a kind of comic end To all of this,

Because after two weeks Of wandering the countryside,

The lion just wandered Back into the zoo,

Apparently because He was hungry.

Apparently because He was hungry.

I guess that lion was A little more accustomed

To being fed than having to Chase down its own food.

Montgomery: The lion came back,

And went back into his cage, Here.

And they locked him up, And fed him.

But that was the beginning Of the end for hallie's zoo.

Narrator: No livestock were attacked, No one was injured,

But suddenly, A new level of scrutiny

Was focused Upon the zoo.

I don't believe that anybody Ever knew that it was illegal

I don't believe that anybody Ever knew that it was illegal

To have exotic animals In van buren county.

It's just that, Once the lion incident happened,

That was an excuse To get rid of the exotic animals

In van buren county.

The law was already there,

Just no one had ever Really enforced it.

No one had ever Talked about it.

Narrator: after a decade Pulling in excited tourists

And weary travelers, In 1979,

Hallie's rest stop and zoo Was shut down.

Hallie's rest stop and zoo Was shut down.

Montgomery: When the zoo closed, the animals Were given to the memphis zoo,

The san diego zoo, The little rock zoo.

And then, the animals That were germane to here

Were just released Into the wild.

For anyone who drove past This place after that,

All they'd see was that cage On the side of the road.

Narrator: While the animals are long gone,

There was still another twist In the tale of this place,

There was still another twist In the tale of this place,

When rick stumbled upon The boarded-up site in 2011.

Well, we were rounding The curve,

And I felt like I heard god say, "Look to your left."

And all we could see Was the corner of the building.

We pulled over, and my wife Thought that we were having

Some kind of car trouble.

And I said, "No. I think this is The place we're supposed to be."

Narrator: With that chance encounter, The wheels were set in motion

For the site's Next chapter.

For the site's Next chapter.

Bell: it's always nice To see old places

Get turned into Something new,

But the best times are when They're something so surprising,

Like this.

They turned a zoo Into a church.

Narrator: the old restaurant And gift shop has been restored,

And become The church itself,

While the zoo Has also been pulled

Into the action Once again.

Montgomery: We utilize the zoo.

This place has helped our church To reach out to the community.

This place has helped our church To reach out to the community.

We have "Biblical who's who" At the zoo.

And we actually have people Playing biblical characters

In the old cages.

And then, for christmas, We decorate the zoo.

We light up The train track.

It's just a good way To minister to the community.

Narrator: In rick's eyes, as minister,

They couldn't have wished for A better spot to build a church.

Montgomery: my wife and I Love the place.

As a matter of fact, If things go as we plan,

We will be Entombed here.

We will be Entombed here.

We plan on Staying here.

The zoo is us.

*

Narrator: in belarus, 7 miles From the border with ukraine,

Is a derelict land That was once a paradise.

Scott: what's most intriguing About this place is,

It doesn't appear On any maps.

It doesn't appear On any maps.

So, even if you wanted to, You couldn't find it.

Meigs: Your first impression, here,

Is that you're In the middle of nowhere.

You don't see anyone.

Even looking down from the sky, You can't see any people.

Narrator: the inhabitants Are long gone,

But left behind are the Forgotten pieces of a past life.

Scott: murals on the walls Have been painted for children.

It suggests that whoever Lived here did so happily.

It suggests that whoever Lived here did so happily.

Meigs: you can see Abandoned houses.

You can see Some personal possessions

Scattered about On the ground.

It appears that, when people Did leave this place,

They left in a hurry.

Narrator: the evidence suggests Something happened here

Which turned a neighborhood Into a wasteland,

But the truth may be bigger Than just one neighborhood.

Nusbacher: Belarus and ukraine

Nusbacher: Belarus and ukraine

Were just two provinces Of the soviet empire.

It used to be that soviet power Spanned this border.

But now, something far darker Spans this border.

Narrator: the town's existence Was cut so short

That it was never added To local maps.

So, what catastrophic event Curtailed its life,

And what invisible danger Was left behind?

And what invisible danger Was left behind?

It's the 1970s, The height of the cold war,

The capitalist west versus The communist soviet union.

But behind the scenes In the east,

The union Was in turmoil.

The soviet system Was going to pieces.

The soviet system Of agriculture,

In particular, could not feed The soviet population.

In particular, could not feed The soviet population.

Ordinary fruit and vegetables Were hard to come by.

People used to line up Outside the baker,

Not knowing whether the baker Was gonna be able

To sell them bread

When they got to The front of the line.

Meigs: there was a great irony That the soviets

Had a world-class military,

And they were spending billions On nuclear weapons,

But they couldn't even feed Their own people.

But they couldn't even feed Their own people.

Narrator: piotr romaniuk grew up In belarus during this time,

When the country Was under soviet rule.

[ speaks native language ]

Translater: we're standing in What used to be a shop.

Those are the remains Of refrigerators.

This shop supplied The whole town with groceries

And other necessities.

Narrator: but this shop Was different to many others

Across the soviet union.

Across the soviet union.

There were no Bare shelves.

For, here, Everyone had plenty of food.

Meigs: In this part of belarus,

The soviets set up Kind of a model community

To raise cattle for food.

And they built the housing, Supermarkets, schools,

Everything they needed to house The workers and their families.

Narrator: the approach worked So well, in fact,

That the people gave this town An unofficial name --

"Sunny."

"Sunny."

Translator: why sunny?

Because they planned a heyday For the region, something new,

That the new town would be Bright, joyful, sunny.

They wanted this To be a model town,

And so it could be used As an example elsewhere

In the soviet union,

And show that collective Work and community

Could be a big success For the future.

Meigs: it looks like it was A lovely place to live

Meigs: it looks like it was A lovely place to live

At a time when so many people In soviet union

Lived in really Substandard housing.

They must have been Quite envious of these people.

Translator: It was a place full of life.

A place for work And for leisure.

Behind us is what used to be A house of culture,

Which was supposed to Have opened in 1986,

But it never happened.

Narrator: that year, Something went wrong.

Narrator: that year, Something went wrong.

An event occurred that would Destroy this neighborhood,

And send a shockwave Around the world.

*

Narrator: In former soviet belarus

Is a place that was built To spread happiness.

But one sunday morning in 1986, Paradise was lost.

[ romaniuk speaks Native language ]

Translator: It was the first time Since the second world war

That the alarm had sounded.

It was horrifying.

And people couldn't grasp What was happening.

Narrator: On may 3rd, an order was made.

The residents of sunny Were to evacuate

Over the coming days.

Few understood why.

Translator: It was horrible.

People were saying "Goodbye" To each other forever.

They weren't sure they'd ever See each other again,

Because they'd never experienced Anything like this before.

Because they'd never experienced Anything like this before.

Narrator: a panic Had gripped the authorities.

Something so disastrous Had happened

That the state Tried to keep it secret.

Nusbacher: in the soviet union, News was tightly controlled.

Bad news Was a state secret.

And there was no news of the Nuclear disaster at chernobyl.

Narrator: a week earlier, A large explosion at the site

Narrator: a week earlier, A large explosion at the site

Had exposed A nuclear reactor core.

Meigs: two of the reactors At the chernobyl nuclear plant

Went into meltdown.

They started spewing Radioactive smoke into the air.

Firefighters came in To try to put out the blaze,

But, of course,

They were subjected To even more intense radiation.

Translator: Yes, we knew of the accident.

But nobody recognized Its scale.

But nobody recognized Its scale.

We thought it would all Be over soon.

They'd put the fire out, And we would resume living

As if nothing Had happened.

When the word "Radiation" Was said for the first time,

The older locals Couldn't even repeat it.

They kept saying "Radio,"

And didn't understand Why they were being forced

To move out of this Beautiful place of our country

Because of something That nobody could see.

The town of sunny Sits near the border

Between what is now Belarus and ukraine.

Between what is now Belarus and ukraine.

Chernobyl lies just 20 miles To the south.

Airborne radiation was emitted From the fire at the power plant

For 10 straight days.

It spread across europe.

But around 70% of it Is estimated to have settled

On the ground in belarus.

It must have Been terrifying.

They'd been living in the Fallout zone for almost a week,

They'd been living in the Fallout zone for almost a week,

But no one really knew How bad the fallout was,

And no one really trusted The government

To tell them The truth.

At the time, Piotr was working as a teacher,

And was assigned To help with the evacuation.

[ speaks native language ]

Translator: we were summoned To the district committee,

So that they could Assign party members

To be in charge of resettlement Of different organizations.

I was sent to coliban village, Where my main duty

Was to ensure the resettlement Of the school.

Was to ensure the resettlement Of the school.

Narrator: Within 24 hours, the town Of sunny had been abandoned.

But the residents Of this former paradise

Would face One final injustice.

Years later, when scientists Went back to study the soil,

And to study the people,

And look for the effects Of the radiation,

They found that the radiation Levels were far lower

Than they had suspected At first.

Than they had suspected At first.

And in fact, The residents of this area

Probably didn't need To be evacuated.

Translator: Maybe some measures were Unnecessary in areas like ours,

Because we didn't have Any nuclear facilities,

Or anything like that.

Some mistakes were made When it came to measuring

The different levels Of radiation,

But it was due to A lack of experts.

Narrator: as the town sat empty From 1986 onwards,

Few outsiders heard the stories Of places such as this.

Meigs: What happened in belarus

Is a really overlooked story Of chernobyl.

Everybody talks about the Immediate area around the plant,

About pryp'yat'.

A lot of people Don't realize

That much of the dislocation Happened in belarus, next door.

Huge areas evacuated, Lives uprooted,

Huge areas evacuated, Lives uprooted,

Disrupted forever.

Narrator: life, however, Has returned to sunny.

Today, it's classed As a nature reserve,

And has been reclaimed By wild elk and wolves.

And piotr now looks For the positives

In what lies ahead For this region.

[ romaniuk speaks Native language ]

Translator: I suppose I've made My peace with it.

The reserve employs Many of our people.

The reserve employs Many of our people.

It provides workspaces.

So, we treat it Like a facility.

You know, It's our facility.

Narrator: Over 30 years after residents Were forced from their homes,

Sunny remains A restricted area.

But change May lie ahead.

[ speaks native language ]

Translator: Today, we are rebuilding it, And everything is growing.

Translator: Today, we are rebuilding it, And everything is growing.

We are developing Very quickly.

It makes me happy As a citizen of this area,

And as someone Who is responsible

For socioeconomic growth Of this area.

It's great.

*

*

Narrator: in the waters Off the coast of taiwan

Lies a small Volcanic island.

Selwood: much of the island Is covered in a thick carpet

Of emerald green grass -- Hence its name, "Green island."

Auerbach: it's a place Of towering rocks.

It's surrounded By coral reefs.

It's not easy to get to.

It's not easy to get to.

Narrator: fading clues Suggest this island

Was more than just A tropical paradise.

Something that really Strikes you is,

You see all these propaganda Slogans and messages daubed,

Painted, scrawled, Engraved.

So, clearly, the island was Of some political importance,

But to whom, And why?

Narrator: Further in, a series of Brutalist concrete structures,

Narrator: Further in, a series of Brutalist concrete structures,

Hint at the location's True nature.

As we look more closely, We see a walled off facility

That really stands out From the rest of the landscape.

Selwood: For almost half a century,

This collection of buildings Struck fear

Into the hearts and minds Of every taiwanese person.

Auerbach: green island Is forever tied

To one of taiwan's And humanity's darkest chapters.

To one of taiwan's And humanity's darkest chapters.

Narrator: During the second world war, Taiwan and its islands

Were ruled over by japan.

After the fallen Empire's surrender,

Control was taken back, By china.

For the taiwanese people,

A new age of terror Was about to unfold.

Chiang kai-shek became The leader of china in 1928.

Chiang kai-shek became The leader of china in 1928.

But in 1949, following The chinese civil war,

He and his Nationalist party

Were defeated By the communist forces

Under the leadership Of mao zedong.

And chiang kai-shek Takes his government,

Which used to govern All of china,

Across to the island Of taiwan,

80 miles from The chinese mainland.

Narrator: Forced into exile, the deposed Leader plotted to reclaim china

From the newly installed Communist government.

From the newly installed Communist government.

And green island

Would come to play a key role In chiang kai-shek's plans.

As you look around, you see All these propaganda messages,

One of which reads,

"Be firm against communism, And ready to win."

All this propaganda, And the barrack-like buildings,

Make you think it's some kind Of military training facility.

Narrator: however, this was not A place to house his army.

Narrator: however, this was not A place to house his army.

It was designed To destroy his rivals.

Chiang kai-shek Is beleaguered

By political enemies Inside taiwan,

The old locals Who resent the intrusion

Of these mainlanders Onto their island,

But also lots of chinese spies Inside the nationalist movement.

Narrator: in a desperate attempt To cling to power,

He rounds up those believed To be a threat.

Lin xiu wei Lives on green island,

And grew up hearing the Terrible stories from this time.

And grew up hearing the Terrible stories from this time.

Translator: the people's right To freedom of speech

And freedom to gather together Was stripped away.

For example, If three people got together,

They would be accused of joining A trade union organization.

This period Of brutal martial law

Became known as "The white terror."

Wawro: chiang kai-shek creates This green island as a place

Where he can send people For interrogation and detention

Where he can send people For interrogation and detention

As he launches this So-called "White terror."

Narrator: this was the new life Correction center.

Locked inside, however,

Was not the typical Cast of criminals.

Here, the ones being persecuted Were those with the power

To influence others,

Not through violence, But through reason.

The treatment Of the inmates here was brutal,

To say the least.

And for one individual, Their story of survival

And for one individual, Their story of survival

Would help alter the course Of taiwan forever.

*

Narrator: In the early 1950s,

The first prison On green island was opened.

It was a place Where enemies of the state

Were sent for incarceration, Interrogation, and torture.

But those confined here were not The usual breed of criminal.

This wasn't A normal prison,

Full of hardened And violent criminals.

Instead, you had scholars And writers, poets and artists.

Instead, you had scholars And writers, poets and artists.

Auerbach: as we know, nothing Is more dangerous than an idea.

Those deemed to be The most dangerous,

With the most dangerous ideas, They were sent to green island,

Isolated from the rest Of the population,

Where even the power Of their poetry,

The power of their art, Couldn't reach anyone.

Narrator: in time, some of these Prisoners would transform taiwan

Into the country It is today.

But while caged, they endured Unimaginable hardship.

But while caged, they endured Unimaginable hardship.

The main building is a strange Hexagonal structure,

With four lines of prison cells Extending out from the core.

Hard labor and torture Were daily occurrences, too.

For a start, each prisoner had a Sleeping space only 2 foot wide.

This wasn't just a prison.

Auerbach: It was a re-education center,

Really an ideological Brainwashing center, as well.

Really an ideological Brainwashing center, as well.

And the methods used were Very extreme, to the point

At which some prisoners Were tattooed

With propaganda slogans Like "Oppose communism,"

"Resist the russians."

Narrator: While those locked inside Would have dreamt of escape,

The site's position meant This was nigh on impossible.

[ speaks native language ]

Translator: there were reports Of political prisoners

Who attempted to escape, But they all failed.

Why? Because green island Is surrounded by the sea.

Why? Because green island Is surrounded by the sea.

Known as "The black currant,"

The powerful waters That encircle the island

To pull flotsam Back to the shore.

It's rumored one desperate Prisoner swam all night

Towards the mainland,

Only to find himself Back where he started

As the sun rose.

Translator: some prisoners Crafted little wooden rafts

In an effort to escape.

However, they were just rolled Back to the shores by the waves.

However, they were just rolled Back to the shores by the waves.

They were then beaten up By the guards in the bunker.

It's estimated that, Over five decades,

The regime arrested up to 150,000 political opponents,

With many of them Ending up here.

Around 20,000 were executed Without proper trial,

Most for the crime

Of criticizing A corrupt government.

So, chiang kai-shek's terror Really decimated

So, chiang kai-shek's terror Really decimated

An entire generation Of chinese intellectuals.

And it would take taiwanese Society a long time to recover.

Narrator: but for the people Held against their will,

Their dreams of freedom And liberty didn't die.

The suffering only fueled Desire for change.

The seeds of democratic taiwan Were also sown

By this persecution.

One prisoner was kept here For so long,

One prisoner was kept here For so long,

And resisted so valiantly,

And his struggle Had such a profound effect

On the course Of taiwanese politics

That he became known As taiwan's mandela.

In total, shih ming-teh Spent 25 years locked away.

Much of it was here, In solitary confinement,

And several years of that Was on hunger strike.

It's said that he was force-fed Over 3,000 times.

It's said that he was force-fed Over 3,000 times.

It's an incredibly Invasive process

That involves shoving a tube Up your nose,

And down your esophagus,

And then pouring in some food From a funnel on top.

So, this guy Endured all of these things,

Asked for no mercy, Put up with it all,

And really became The conscience of taiwan.

The rule of martial law Was eventually lifted in 1987.

The rule of martial law Was eventually lifted in 1987.

For the first time In a century,

Opposition political parties Were allowed to form.

With that, Many of the prisoners

Still being held Were soon released.

And once released, They formed this party.

They insist on democracy, Human rights.

They win elections.

And shih ming-teh Is one of the guys

Who founds the democratic Progressive party,

The party that now Governs taiwan.

Narrator: This site continued to operate

As a prison, But this time,

As a prison, But this time,

Criminals more deserving of Captivity occupied its cells.

Selwood: its prisoners were now The gangsters and mobsters

Who had helped The old regime

Round up The innocent intellectuals.

In the final years Of the 20th century,

The prison closed its doors For good.

But the trauma experienced here Still lives long

In the memory Of the island's residents.

Translator: we must remember That taiwan once experienced

Translator: we must remember That taiwan once experienced

Strict political rule.

We must learn from The lessons of the past.

History might be repeated.

If we don't learn, The tragedy might happen again.

Narrator: in 2002, The taiwanese government

Opened the doors of the prison Once again,

Though it now welcomes a very Different kind of visitor.

Wawro: Green island today is a tourist Destination with beaches,

Wawro: Green island today is a tourist Destination with beaches,

Hotels, snorkeling.

But it's really a reminder Of taiwan's very complex past.

Auerbach: taiwan's frosty Relationship with china

Continues to this very day.

On the one hand, You have taiwan,

A flourishing Free market democracy.

On the other hand, You have china,

One party communist Dictatorship

That has never recognized The independence of taiwan.