Japanese enemy aliens who were interned in New Zealand and died during internment is now being honoured through our project When You Call My Name.
Our project was originally conceived to honour the 192 civilian internees who are buried at the Cowra Japanese Cemetery. As an undertaking, this seemed like a natural extension of the Civilian Internment Symposium in 2014, the proceeding Civilian Internment Arts Program, and the subsequent Cowra Japanese Cemetery Online Database. But when Dr Yuriko Nagata, the author of Unwanted Aliens: Japanese Internment in Australia During World War II, said she wanted the two internees who died en route to Australia from the Dutch East Indies and were given a sea burial included, it meant that the project opened itself to others who died en route to Australia.
Dr Sophie Constable sent me a paper by Professor Judith A. Bennett, Japanese Wartime Internees in New Zealand: Fragmenting Pacific Island Families, which not only mentioned nine people who died in the plane crash, but also two others who died during internment. Further research into this plane crash revealed that there were three Thai students who had been interned on Somes Island with the Japanese on board. Looking through available files online at the New Zealand archives revealed one more Japanese internee who died while interned.
If we don’t honour them, who will?
More Reading:
More info about the Thai Students in New Zealand from the Hocken Blog, University of Otago : https://blogs.otago.ac.nz/thehockenblog/although-my-country-is-against-you-i-still-remain-the-same-to-you-as-before-words-of-gratitude-and-uncertainty-thai-students-wartime-communications-in-new-zeal/

1943 Liberator crash site near Whenuapai Aerodrome (now RNZAF Base Auckland) NZ Archives Reference: ACIE 8798 EA1 675/ 89/3/18 1