Just hours after the declaration of war in December 1941, Japanese in Australia were swiftly arrested. The Nikkei community had shrunk to only 1100 people at the outbreak of war, and the majority (almost 98%) were interned in remote camps around Australia.

There, they joined more than 3000 other Japanese civilians who’d been arrested in Allied-controlled countries such as the Dutch East Indies and New Caledonia, and sent to Australia to be interned. Despite being grouped together as “enemy aliens,” the Japanese internees in Australia were extremely diverse and many did not speak the same language.

From February 1946, the majority were repatriated to Japan, many against their will.

Join us for a fascinating look at this history and how it compares to the Japanese Canadian story. For more details and registration, check this page

Speakers: Dr Yuriko Nagata, Dr Christine Piper, Mr Andrew Hasegawa.