Witness: a terrible role in a tragic WW2 event
11 November 2009
For more than 60 years Jack Atkinson, a former
It is a constant reminder of his terrible role in a tragic
event of World War II, the sinking of the Montevideo
Maru off the
Atkinson was a machinist on USS Sturgeon, which by mistake torpedoed the Montevideo Maru, a merchant ship being used by the Japanese to transport prisoners-of-war and civilians from New Britain.
''The captain thought that it was a troop ship,'' he said. ''He thought that's what it was.''
Minutes later he was one of several crew members invited to inspect the damage through the submarine's periscope. “We thought it was a troop ship… We saw people jumping over the sides,'' says Atkinson, 93, fighting back tears. ''I'm so sorry that it happened. But we didn't know about it... It was just a terrible thing.''
Atkinson, one of the few remaining observers of the encounter, is interviewed in the documentary The Tragedy of Montevideo Maru, to be shown on the History Channel tonight.
The screening coincides with a fresh initiative by family and friends to secure recognition and proper remembrance of those who died in the attack, who numbered more than twice the Australian casualties in the Vietnam War.
Next week a delegation led by Kim Beazley,
ambassador-designate to the
''The
For those who died, the delegation will seek permanent
national recognition, in the form of a memorial in
Despite the passage of time, the disaster and the disorganised evacuation of Rabaul that preceded it remained imprinted on family and friends of the dead, said Keith Jackson, chairman of the Montevideo Maru memorial committee.
''There has been a continuation of grief and frustration to this day … because of failure by previous Australian governments to appropriately recognise the tragedy and effectively respond to a profound need for closure.''
Source: Still
haunted by song of doomed diggers by John Huxley, Sydney Morning Herald, 11 November
2009
Read the full story here
Photo: USS Sturgeon
One of our former Moderators, Malcolm Macleod, read John Huxley’s story in the SMH yesterday and phoned in to say you might be interested in knowing (if you don’t already) that there is a memorial for the Montevideo Maru at the Uniting Church’s Centre for Ministry at North Parramatta.
Apparently 12 members of the Methodist Church (now Uniting Church) died in the sinking of the Montevideo Maru.
Bishop Simon Gaius came from Papua New Guinea to dedicate the bronze plaque at the entrance of George Brown Hall at the Centre for Ministry.
Posted by: Stephen Webb, Media Officer, Uniting Church | 12 November 2009 at 02:48 PM