Michael Bell, Indigenous Liaison Officer with the Australian War Memorial, was the scheduled speaker at the Yass and District Historical Society August monthly meeting. His topic was Serving Under the Protector.
It was coincidental that Michael’s hour-long presentation came just days after the robust debate in Yass Valley Council in the July 28th meeting over the proposal to fly the Aboriginal flag alongside the Australian flag in front of the Yass Soldiers Memorial Hall.
Michael styles himself as a narrator, a storyteller, not an historian, but his presentation was meticulously researched and supported by confronting original documents illustrating the role of Aboriginal servicemen and the struggle they faced to enlist to defend their country.
Michael’s work at the Australian War Memorial has recorded 10 Aboriginal servicemen fought in the Boer War; in the First World War, he has identified over 1100 enlistments or attempts to enlist with 81 Aboriginal men present at Gallipoli, of whom 13 died. He currently estimates more than 7,500 served in the forces in the Second World War, 44 in the British Commonwealth Occupation Force, 80 plus in the Korean War and more than 300 in the Vietnam War.
These statistics don’t reveal the struggle Aboriginal men had to get accepted into the services in the first place. The Defence Act of 1903 amended 1909 Section 61 states, “Persons who are not substantially of European origin” may not be enlisted. After the losses at Gallipoli and the defeat of both Conscription Referendums, the need for men caused a change in instructions to enlisting officers. Enlistment of what was described at the time as ‘half castes’ was permitted “if satisfied that one of the parents is of European origin” But Aboriginal men wanted to serve, defend their country and come back to a country where, as Private Charles Mere put it, “my people will have a better deal.”
The better deal he was talking about directly addressed the draconian restrictions placed upon Aboriginal people by the Aboriginal Protection Act of 1909. Under this Act, the Protector was given powers over every aspect of Aborigines’ lives; where they could live, their children could be taken, they couldn’t own property, movement, permission to marry, wages, alcohol. This Act was not repealed until 1969.
Michael Bell gave numerous examples of how men got around the enlistment restrictions. Richard Martin from Stradbroke Island, a Nunukul man, changed his identity in 1918 to New Zealander. Jeff Barnes applied for and was given exemption which stated that he was now “regarded as a white man” and went on to serve in the LAC as a leading aircraftman in WWll. William Morris Chatfield was initially rejected due to “unsuitable physique (colour)”, but tried again after the ‘half caste’ law amendment and was accepted in March 1918. Thomas Samuel was discharged in a day as his enlistment had been “irregular”. His papers noted his disease as “aboriginality”. In WW2, George Hilliet and his brother William were discharged as “too full blood.”
Local Tom Bell, who had been removed from the local Public School because he was an Aboriginal, did manage to serve his country. At Mungindi, a sympathetic policeman arrested a group of Aboriginal men because that took them out from under the control of the Protector and enabled them to march on Anzac Day. Len Walters flew 94 missions in WW2 but couldn’t get a pilot licence when he came home. His service was acknowledged some fifty years late.
It was such a pity only Mayor McGrath and Councillor Cameron were able to attend to hear Michael Bell’s very informative presentation. Indigenous men were fighting for Australia, incidentally, like all Australian servicemen, under the British flag, the red ensign and the blue ensign until 1954, when the latter was proclaimed the Australian National Flag. There is so much that so many of us don’t know. Michael’s message was to learn and understand so that we can go forward together as a nation.
by Judith Davidson
