YONEZAWA Yosamatsu
Born: 1870 – Died: 14 February 1946
Particulars:
Yosamatsu, born in Ishikawa Prefecture in Japan, was single, and migrated to Western Australia in pursuit of work. He settled in Cossack, once the centre of Western Australia’s pearling industry, where he became a pearl diver. Following the outbreak of the Pacific War, Yosamatsu was arrested in 1941 and sent via Harvey to be interned at Loveday Internment Camp in South Australia in 1942. Suffering from long term paralysis and deteriorating health, he applied to be released from internment on medical grounds. He was listed as ‘dangerously ill’ due to cardiac failure and cognitive decline. Yosamatsu died in February 1944 at the age of 76. His grave is in the Japanese Cemetery in Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
–Jo Anne Shiosaki
More info:
Ben Shiosaki with JoAnne Yates
Artist/s Statement:
My niece JoAnne Yates chose to adopt Yosamatsu Yonezawa. JoAnne said:
‘I was deeply moved by Yosamatsu’s story. He worked in his younger years as a pearl diver, contributing to Australia’s frontier economy. Then as an elderly man, unable to walk he was confined behind barbed wire, invisible to the nation he called home. Thank you for your contribution to this country, Yosamatsu.’
Artist Bio:
Ben Shiosaki is a fourth-generation Nikkei who resides in Geraldton, Western Australia. With a passion for history and photography, he believes these stories and legacies in the When You Call My Name Project should not be forgotten. JoAnne Yates is Ben’s niece.