1. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) Hours after the attacks on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Imperial Japanese forces launched an attack on the Philippines, cutting off vital lines of communication to members of the Armed Forces of the United States (referred to in this Act as the Armed Forces ) and Filipino troops in the Far East under the command of General Douglas MacArthur. (2) On December 8, 1941, the 200th Coast Artillery Regiment, successors to the New Mexico National Guardsmen who made up part of the famed Rough Riders of the Spanish-American War, were the first to fire . (3) Despite being cut off from supply lines and reinforcements, members of the Armed Forces and Philippine troops quickly executed a plan to delay the Japanese invasion and defend the Philippines against that invasion. (4) By April 1942, troops from the United States and the Philippines had bravely and staunchly fought off enemy attacks in Bataan for more than 4 months under strenuous conditions that resulted in widespread starvation and disease. (5) By maintaining their position and engaging the enemy for as long as they did, the troops at Bataan were able to change the momentum of the war, delaying the Japanese timetable to take control of the Southeast Pacific for needed war materials. Because of the heroic actions of the defenders of Bataan, members of the Armed Forces and other Allied forces throughout the Pacific had time to regroup and prepare for the successful liberation of the Pacific and the Philippines. (6) On April 9, 1942, Major General Edward King, whose troops suffered from starvation and a lack of supplies, surrendered the soldiers from the United States and the Philippines into enemy hands. (7) Over the next week, troops from the Armed Forces and the Philippines were taken prisoner and forced to march 65 miles without any food, water, or medical care in what came to be known as the Bataan Death March . (8) During this forced march, thousands of soldiers died, either from starvation, lack of medical care, sheer