At the same time , Parsons and Smith brought Fertig some unpleasant orders from MacArthur 's headquarters . The American Army was willing to provide radios and other equipment for Fertig 's command , but these were only to be used for passing information on Japanese activities , from coastwatchers and other sources , to Australia . The guerrillas were ordered not to engage in offensive activities against the Japanese . Fertig admitted that gathering intelligence was an important mission that he would support . However , due to the numerous atrocities that the Japanese were committing against the Philippine population , the only way that Fertig could continue to recruit and maintain a guerrilla force was to aggressively attack the Japanese when and where the guerrillas had a chance of winning , so as to provide the Filipinos an outlet for revenge against the Japanese . Fertig stated that if he ordered his men to stop killing the Japanese , then his men would follow other leaders who would probably not be willing to cooperate with MacArthur 's headquarters and its directives . In addition , General Charles A. Willoughby , MacArthur 's Chief of Intelligence , was convinced that providing the guerrillas with arms and ammunition was a waste of resources . If a regular U.S. Army had been defeated by the Japanese in the Philippines , then no irregular force could do better . The guerrillas ' only purpose was to provide intelligence and later , if fully equipped prior to the return of American forces to the Philippines , to fight as regular forces under the command of American officers
numerous atrocities
Japanese war crimes
Wendell Fertig