A once-hidden World War II internment and prisoner-of-war site on Oahu is now open to public tours, a neutral but meaningful development for history and education.

• Honouliuli, the largest and longest-running Japanese American incarceration site in Hawaii during World War II, is giving public tours for the first time.
• The site was mainly a prisoner-of-war camp, holding over 4,000 POWs, including teenage boys forced into the Japanese army.
• Visitors see original guard tower posts, a mess hall slab, and a crossing once called "Hell's Bridge," where families reunited with loved ones held there.
• Organizers say the tours raise questions about human rights during wartime and under martial law, aimed especially at educating younger generations.
• The program is a pilot with a waitlist of 1,800 people, and organizers hope to add a second monthly tour in 2027.

Outlook: Demand is far outpacing supply, so an expansion of tour dates is likely if the pilot continues to succeed.