The incredible story of 270 Australians who defied all odds to hold down 10,000 Japanese troops during a critical point of World War II will be exhibited at the Western Australian Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder from October 26.

Debt of Honour: Australia’s First Commandos and East Timor recounts little known details of one of Australia’s most defining Second World War campaigns and the enduring relationship between the Australian troops and the people of East Timor who risked their lives to help them.

WA Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder Regional Manager Zoe Scott said the exceptional war effort of the Australian 2/2nd Independent Company and their connection with the East Timorese people is one of overwhelming courage and enduring mateship.

“Surpassing all expectations, the Australian commandos – 80 per cent of whom were recruited from WA – undertook a hit and run campaign successfully diverting more than 10,000 enemy troops from the Kokoda and Guadalcanal battles,” Ms Scott said.

“Lacking supplies and local knowledge, the commandos relied on support from the ‘Criados’ - young East Timor men and boys who volunteered to help at great peril to themselves and their villages.”

Mostly aged between nine and 15, the Criados carried packs, shared food and shelter, educated the Australians about the unforgiving landscape and acted as their eyes and ears, reporting on the Japanese movements and attacks.

“The soldiers of the 2/2nd felt they owed their lives to the people of East Timor and many dedicated their post-war years to repaying this debt of honour,” Ms Scott said

“This commitment became an enduring legacy for many soldiers and their families who over the past 70 years have continued to maintain these friendships and provide financial and educational assistance to the East Timorese people.”

The WA Museum–curated exhibition consists of almost 140 incredibly poignant objects, and also explores the Australian Government’s complex relationship with East Timor/Timor Leste from the 1975 invasion to the 1999 Intervention and beyond.

Debt of Honour: Australia’s First Commandos and East Timor will be on display at the Western Australian Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder from October 26 to February 2, 2014.

For more information, including video introductions by the exhibition’s curators, visit museum.wa.gov.au/whats-on/debt-honour

 

Media contact:
Niki Comparti
Western Australian Museum
6552 7805, niki.comparti@museum.wa.gov.au