For years relatives try to get to the burial grounds, and when they reach this goal, I understand them. It s hard to communicate how emotional the experience is for them, she says. One elderly woman lost consciousness when she found her husband s grave in Artyom. For seven years Buraya has searched through archives, poured over POW letters, interviewed locals in the know, and trekked through the taiga in search of grave sites. It s difficult, says Buraya.
Rivers change course, clearings fill.
Sakue Yakuzaki POWs were held in camps throughout the Soviet Union. Of the 113 grave sites known in Primorye, about half have been located. From 1992 to March of this year, the remains of 1,097 Japanese were sent home from Primorye out of a total of 8,116 returned from the former Soviet Union, says Mitsuru Ota, vice consul at the Japanese Consulate. Buraya believes Japanese POWs in Primorye numbered about 60,000. Some tourist firms see money to be made.