Albert M. IDEMA (aka Pieter) [????-????]

Albert M. "Pieter" Idema served as a naval officer aboard the Dutch submarine 0-20, which was sunk in December 1941.  He was pulled from the water with most of the crew by the Imperial Japanese Navy and eventually sent to the North Point POW Camp in early 1942.  In late January 1942, he escaped from North Point with fellow submarine officer Roel J. Hordijk and Canadian Benjamin A. Proulx of the Hong Kong Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve.  The three men made their way to unoccupied China with the help of communist guerrillas and the BAAG.  Proulx briefly served with General Claire Chennault's American Volunteer Group (the famed "Flying Tigers") before returning to Canda in July 1942.  Idema and Hordijk reached Ceylon in April 1942, where they linked up with the surviving Dutch submarines from the East Indies, which were now operating out of Royal Navy bases. 

Corrections to the above information, further biographical details, and the story of Idema's military service for the remainder of the war can hopefully be supplied by readers of this forum.