The Shame & Disgrace.

S

spiraltwista

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Nov 29, 2002
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FROM 'THE SUN' , A red top UK National Paper ,

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"MUSEUM chiefs have broken a Gurkha war hero’s heart by refusing to let him see his treasured Victoria Cross one final time.


Fearless Lieutenant Tulbahadur Pun, 89, won the nation’s top medal for bravery during World War II.

Aged just 21, he single-handedly stormed two Japanese armed positions with his Bren Gun blazing from his hip after his comrades were wiped out in Burma.

Now the ageing hero — who lives in poverty in Nepal — has begged his old Army regiment’s museum to send him his medal so he can wear it with pride before he dies.

But museum bosses have refused, saying the VC no longer belongs to him.

Tulbahadur — one of only 12 winners of the VC still alive — is too unwell to travel to the UK.

He said he handed over the medal to the Gurkha Museum in Winchester, Hants, for safekeeping in the ’70s on officers’ advice.


He told The Sun: “Until 1995, I used to go to the UK and wear my Victoria Cross. Now I would like to wear it again before I leave the Earth — I can’t understand why they won’t let me.”

The grandfather of 15 is forced to spend all his VC pension on medicines for his heart problems.

London barrister Rebekah Wilson, who is representing him, said: “The medal is something he cherishes. Time is not on his side and I think it would be shameful if he did not get to see his medal again.”

But Gurkha Museum curator Gerald Davies said: “Tulbahadur Pun’s medal has been donated to the museum by his regimental association.

“We have a duty of care to ensure this medal is available to the public to see and it is secure.”

The citation for Tulbahadur’s VC praises his “outstanding courage and superb gallantry” in capturing the Japanese machine-gun posts and killing three enemies."

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Set up, robbed & conned, bet his officer never told him what it was worth.......


Spiral
 
Jeez. Not that my opinion matters for squat here. But dang. What an outrage. I was him I'd sue to get it back permanently.
 
-guy shouldnt have to go thru this crap-
is the british govt that screwed up -my god let the man die in peace with his medal-
 
“We have a duty of care to ensure this medal is available to the public to see and it is secure.”

Who cares about the actual tin medal!? It's the man and his deeds to EARN it that are worth remembering. And he's still alive! And has one request, and they're denying it!

A grateful nation remembers? To them he's already dead.


Mike :mad: :thumbdn:
 
This is an interesting problem because, when you look at it, both sides are correct. The hero wants his medal; the museum (which has legally owned it for a while now) does not want to run the risk of losing it, as it is irreplaceable.

I'm glad that it's not my job to decide what to do here. If I were forced to make the choice, I'd give him the medal (as this is more correct in my mind than hiding it away) but I'd have my doubts...especially if it wound up getting lost later.

It's too bad that he gave it away in the first place. Let that be a lesson to us all.
 
The museum wouldn't have the medal if it weren't for that elderly hero doing his job and serving his country. That is an outrage that they won't give him the medal back for the last few years of his life.:mad:
 
Which does not change the fact that he no longer owns it. I'm sure that everyone reading this has earned something that they no longer own, even if it's simply money. It happens. Be thankful that the present owner believes in preserving and displaying it for the gain and pleasure of many. It could've ended up on Ebay. Such things sometimes do.

As I said, if I had to make the decision, I'd give him the medal...and I'd be sweating and wringing my hands the entire time that it's gone because if it didn't come back, there would be no replacing it.
 
Dave Rishar said:
Which does not change the fact that he no longer owns it. I'm sure that everyone reading this has earned something that they no longer own, even if it's simply money. It happens. Be thankful that the present owner believes in preserving and displaying it for the gain and pleasure of many. It could've ended up on Ebay. Such things sometimes do.

As I said, if I had to make the decision, I'd give him the medal...and I'd be sweating and wringing my hands the entire time that it's gone because if it didn't come back, there would be no replacing it.
Click to expand...

[rant mode = on :mad: ]

He intrusted it to them, or I should say to his regimental association which is an entirely different thing (and by the way who gave them the right to in turn donate it to the museum?) on the advice of an Officer (who else!) to commemorate his feat and the award. Notice I said "intrusted" not gave it away or his right to it. It is still his. As far as I'm concerned if he wanted to melt it down and have it cast into his coffin or something then that's his right, and to hell with what the museum wants. They would not have even had the pleasure of hoarding it in their pissant museum all these years if it were not for his incredible bravery. They are already ahead of the game.

Sorry Spiral, you're a good guy and not to bash your Country (and I know there are aholes the world over), but this is an "only in England" story (so yeah, I guess I DO mean to bash your Country! :D No offense intended. How the once mightly have fallen is all I can think of...)

By the way, the museum curator? He is one of the same kind of people who took personal rifles _loaned_ to them by Americans in the late 30's and 40's, because the English were too pigheaded to see that unilateral disarmament was a bad idea, and then MELTED them down after the war rather than return them to the Americans who had saved their unprepared asses, because "guns are bad and we don't need them now." The parallel is exact. Or the English supply seargents at Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift who counted out exact numbers of cartridges to the troops while the Zulus were attacking, in order to keep track of every round spent. Idiot bureaucrats.

Hopefully this poor SOB will drum up enough outrage to get his medal. I hope he wears it to the grave and tells the museum they can dig for it if they want it back.

[rant mode = off :confused: :o :rolleyes: ]

Norm
 
I see your point Dave but I am with Svashter on this one.

Personaly I think , if they didnt pay him for it or have a written letter donating it to them from him, then they should return it & he & family should have it.

He trusted his Officer & lost a medal worth a fortune...{The museam still have others they aquired for peanuts from Gurkhas & thier widows who had no idea of there worth.}

Spiral
 
However that medal came to be in the museums' hands, the rightful owner is the man who earned it. If them people had half the honor of a common hoodlum, they'd give the man his medal back, and gladly. If they get the medal back after he passes on, then bully for them. If not, then stick a nice picture of the medal in it's place, along with a picture of the man whose courage and sacrifice are why the silly bit of metal and ribbon had any historical significance to start with. :grumpy:

Sarge
 
Sarge has a good comprimise between some of the camps fprming here . Not that I expect comprimise to win the day unless enforced bt diplomacy or Brit law .

It is bizzare how the medal has been given more respect than the man who earned it .

I never understood how unearthing graves or tombs was considered the way to go when the objects unearthed were meant to accompany someone into the afterlife . No matter what personal beliefs are it seemed disrespectful to me .

I wonder what people will theorize about some of us when all they find in our graves is a broken I-Pod and some cheaply made jewelry .

Of course I do not doubt some of us will be buried in fine style with perhaps a couple of " dogs to lay at our feet "
 
You're going to send a priceless medal to a poor dying man in a poor and corrupt, 3rd world country. What could go wrong? :D

p.s. If he's 89 and got the medal when he was 21, it would have been 1938. IIRC, WW2 started in 1939... hmmmm... Some of the facts don't seem to match up.
 
I'd love to know what the Queen thinks about this.

(I have very little positive feeling about the British Royal family. No offense intended Spiral. Just seem spoiled rotton to me. Its hard to imagine supporting a family in this way from here. I have been impressed with the sons for the most part, but Prince Charles is a Royal a******. Except the time whats his name dressed as a Nazi. Little s***.)
 
aproy1101 said:
I'd love to know what the Queen thinks about this.
Click to expand...

What the hell does the British Royal family have to do with some Nepalese dude having remorse over giving away his medal 36 years ago :confused:

And though they're spoilt, I doubt you can name any American President's families that have equalled Military / Academic / Philanthropic achievements, as the British Royal family have had since Queen Elizabeth has been the Monarch.
 
Nor many that have shown the bad behavior common to the royal family. Also no presidents family has lordship over America. As for presidents themselves, I think there are many. Washington, Jackson, Grant, Roosevelt, Eisenhower. Just a few. I'm forgetting a bunch, and I'm no expert. Additionally I don't want to argue the point. Its an opinion. Your opinion of my opinion and subsequent back and forth has no value. I believe the medal is the Victoria Cross, is it not. I think it is granted by the Queen. I thought she might take an interest because of that. Too petty for her attention? Typical.

BTW. Sorry you guys didn't take the cup.
 
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