Fires: The Chinese treated all POWs the same regardless of rank. This resulted in the degradation of discipline among POWs. Do you think this was the intended outcome or just 2nd and 3rd order effects? In addition what would you do to combat the loss of morale among POWs?
I believe it is an intended outcome and a strategy the CCF used to ensure POWs had no core power to plan an escape. Treating all POWs the same, putting them through classes and trying to brainwash them — these are intended method to break a human being down mentally. As later chapters reveal, the strategy was used by the Russians during WWII. The Chinese brainwashing tactics were proven to be successful in penetrating and controlling the minds of POWs. There is not much I can do if I were a POW among other POWs who lost morale as a result of brainwashing and inhumane treatment. I could only hope that I have the skills Steve McQueen possesses in “The Great Escape” or Dengler’s escape and survival skills from “Rescue Dawn”. Pretending to comply, finding strong minded POWs who also want to escape, finding enemy weaknesses, possibly bribing enemy guards to help making progress in escape plan are what I would do if I were a POW.