There was a significant detrimental impact of the war upon the civilians of occupied territories in South East Asia. The Japanese intended the Greater East Asian Co Prosperity Sphere (GEACPS) to be a united zone of mutual co-operation promoting economic development, social and political freedom from western imperial domination. However, the reality of the GEACPS was really a facade and a mere justification for Japanese military expansion. This had a detrimental economic, social and political effect on the civilians of South East Asia. As the war progressed economies became stripped of resources which led to famines. This suppression would lead to deteriorating social condition which would fuel political activism. It is evident that the war had a vast and significant impact upon the civilians of territories occupied by Japan.
The GEACPS was initially seen as the hope for future independence for the occupied territories in South East Asia. In some colonies, the Japanese were welcomed as liberators by native nationalist leaders anticipating that the new order in East Asia would remove western powers in South East Asia. GEACPS was believed to provide South East Asian civilians a united zone of mutual cooperation, bringing both economic developments to the region and ensuring social and political freedom from imperial domination. However, the GEACPS in reality was a mere justification for Japanese military expansion to provide the raw materials that Japans industrial army lacked.
There was a significant political impact upon the civilians of South East Asia. This impact was dependent upon resistance or collaboration of the people towards Japanese efforts to create the GEACPS. Japanese expansion fed the impetus of the nationalist movements to seek independence from the western colonial rule in South East Asia. This positive impact of the war began to the destruction