South West Life

During World War II the Federal Government embarked upon a policy of limited Internment. One of the camps was in the south west.

As we all know, early on in World War II Germany and Italy formed an alliance (often referred to as "The Axis") and declared war on Britain and France. When this happened, all German and Italian immigrants that were living in Allied countries, such as Australia, were categorised as "enemy aliens".

For Australia in the 1940's, having 40 000 "enemy aliens" living within the community became more and more concerning as the war in Europe progressed. The Federal Government became focused on security, and feared the increasing possibility of sabotage, spying, and disruption of communications.

As a result, Australia (along with the United States and Britian) adopted an Internment policy (similar policies were in place in Germany and Italy for French and British migrants). The Internment policy meant that any Italian or German immigrant who was considered to be a security risk were placed in confinement.

No trial. No chance to present their case. The government simply selected those it felt posed risk to national security and incarcerated them. Sounds similar to some modern day scenarios.

And so on June 11th 1940 the process of Internment began in the south west. Selection of those for Internment seemed a bit haphazard, but the procedure was simple. If you were selected, you were usually given a short time to prepare, and then taken from your home and family to a holding centre by the Police or Military personnel. They did not take women and children, only the men, and they were usually given very little time to gather their clothes and personal items before being taken away. They and their families were also provided with little or no information about where they would be going and for how long.

There were three Internment camps in Australia, and one of them was in Harvey. In total, around 1000 Italian men from all over Western Australia were in the camp at some time, guarded by around 200 Australian Army personnel. The camp included barracks for the troops, as well as several workshops, shower rooms, dining and recreation huts, detention cells, and officer's quarters. And then the camp itself was surrounded by six foot barbed wire fencing, topped with rolled barbed wire.

Accounts from some of the prisoners show that they were well treated. Many of the Italian men who were from the area had family in Harvey, and they were allowed to have visits and receive gifts of food. They were not, however, allowed to have any personal contact with people outside the camp. A quote from one of the Internees, Giovanni Fiocco, sums it up well: "I can't say they treated me badly, but they took my business away and, worst of all, they took my freedom".

Over two years, the Internees were not forced to work, but did engage in clearing bush and making logs available for the government, and growing vegetables that were later provided to Military camps. Those Internees with carpentry, shoemaking, and blacksmith skills were also kept busy. On a ligher side, many of the men formed a quoirs, and theatrical performances were held to try and reduce the boredom.

One man, Giuseppe Raneri, had another idea. He decided that he wanted to build a roadside shrine, similar to those they have in Italy. Once he got permission to do so, the Internees built the shrine using materials from within the compound (mainly sandstone and granite).

The shrine is still there to this day, although now it has been housed in small building after it was restored in 1992 by the people of Harvey.

Within the shrine's building is a lot of information about life in the camp, including photos and copies of letters and other memorabilia. It is well worth a look and can be found at the Harvey Visitor Information Centre on Uduc Road.