POW |
Surrender - 1942
| Singapore - from Feb.1942
| Burma -Thailand Railway
| "A" Force |
"B" Force
| "C" Force |
"D" Force | "E"
Force | "F" Force | "G" Force | "H" Force |
"J"
Force |
Singapore - from March, 1945 |
Surrender - 1945
Borneo
1) Ever heard of an atomic bomb?
NX12544 - McLEOD, Graham Stanley, Lt. - BHQ; D Company,
A/Adjt.; 17 Platoon
NX70446 - OLLIS, Ronald Nesbitt (Ron), Lt. - D Company, O/C
17 Platoon
"Then,
there was another 15th August, that was very important, but
this occurred four years later.
By this
time, there were only seven 2/30 personnel out of those,
who'd been sent to Borneo, left alive. We'd been lucky. We'd
been transferred to Kuching before the holocaust began in
Sandakan. Even so, we weren't in good shape. All of us were
slightly mad. I was touchy about my weight. I stopped
weighing myself, when I got down to 6 stone because, apart
from being bad for my morale, I was afraid I'd blow away and
be lost forever.
But that
particular morning was different. I overheard the senior
officers talking and the drift was that the war was over. Of
course this was not a new furphy. It had happened so often
previously that anyone voicing such an opinion was apt to
receive a push, a hefty one. You can't push majors. This was
what the majors were saying. And everyone knows that you've
got to be pretty damned honest to become a major. Not like
lieutenants. Just about anyone can get a couple of pips.
I went to
No. 2 hut, where
Ron Ollis was existing. (You could hardly describe it as
living.)
"Ron”, I
said carefully, "I just may have some good news. On the
other hand, I mightn't. Now, I don't want to raise your
hopes...". "Will you get to the ruddy point?". "O.K. The
majors say that the war is over..... Ever heard of an atomic
bomb?". He hadn't, but that did not matter. If the majors
reckoned this was the 'good guts', there must be something
in it. We grinned at each other like a pair of assassins.
That
night, we watched the Nip Sergeant-Major, when he called for
Tenko. He didn't look happy, so we nudged each other. Very
significant! And he hadn't thumped anyone, either.
Maybe it
was over. Later, our Camp C.O. ordained we'd have some Nasi
Goreng for supper to celebrate. But the guards vetoed that
and made us put the fires out. We agreed that they were bad
losers, but this was proof positive, the stoush was indeed
over.
Now can
you see, why I regard the 15th August as important? Much
more so than the Ides of March.
(Source: Graham McLeod - Makan No. 255,
Aug/Sep, 1980)
2) A Chinese doll
NX12544 - McLEOD, Graham Stanley, Lt. - BHQ; D Company,
A/Adjt.; 17 Platoon
NX70446 - OLLIS, Ronald Nesbitt (Ron), Lt. - D Company, O/C
17 Platoon
"I
saw plenty of sarongs but not one was filled by anyone
remotely resembling Dorothy Lamour. How come? was I in the
wrong P.O.W. camps? We had no one like that in Borneo,
although there was one Chinese doll, working on the roads in
Sandakan, to whom
Ron Ollis
took a fancy. He christened her "Luscious". Or was that
"Lascivious? I can't remember.."
(Source: Graham McLeod - Makan No. 253,
Mar/Apr, 1980)
3) So little is heard of Japan, Java, etc.
QX15766 - BROWN, Myles Peace (Maurice), Pte. - B Company, 12
Platoon
NX70446 - OLLIS, Ronald Nesbitt (Ron), Lt. - D Company, O/C
17 Platoon
NX37369 - OUTRAM, Sidney Murray (Sid), Pte. - A Company, 8
Platoon
"Was
interested to read of Mr. Jack Bennett's comments at 8 Div.
A.I.F. Memorial Service at Bathurst on the Sandakan March.
It has always surprised me that in the early days Changi was
the only place name the media associated with Ex-Ps.O.W. 8
Div. Then the Burma-Thailand railway. Whilst realising that
most of our unit went on the railway, even Makan never
mentions B, D, E Forces, etc., even in statistics. At least
40 of 2/30 Bn. O/R's died on B Force and the officers would
have too, only they were moved to Kuching, following the
execution of Capt. Lionel Mathews and the gaoling of many
others. Though conditions of working parties away from
Singapore would have had much in common, so little is heard
of Japan, Java etc.
(Ed. note: We regret we
have so little information on B, C, D & E Forces, Ron. Pages
262, 385, 386, of the History gives us very little. A typed
list we have shows:
8
Officers, 2 Sjts., 2 Cpls., 1 L/Cpl., and 47 Ptes., Total
left Selarang 8/7/1942 for parts unknown, which finally
ended in Borneo.
The
History says that Officers were moved 15/10/43, and also
states that 6 N.C.Os and 44 other ranks died. Two other
ranks survived,
Sid Outram of A Company because he was sent to Kuching
goal and who now lives at North Wagga, and
M.P. Brown, B Company, sent to Outram Road Gaol in
Singapore, but died in 1/4/55.
Makan
No. 263 Dec. 1981 issue Page 35 stated that Mr. Peter
Firkins who served with the R.A.A.F., recently researched
the tragic happening of SANDAKAN and produced a book on the
subject, entitled, 'HELL TO ETERNITY". Your Ed. has read
this book and it is quite an eye opener to those who were
not there, although it was only written from deep research
and not from personal experience.
(Would you mind giving us a few of your experiences Ron? -
only those who were there can fill the gap! We know little
of your experiences and next of kin of our cobbers on those
Forces would like to learn more. C.C.)"
(Source: Ron Ollis - Makan No. 264,
Jan/March, 1982)
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Last updated
24/08/2022 |