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MY STORY
By Alby Bonser
I grew up during the period of the Great Depression and my father lost his job when a gold mine at Daylesford closed. For a few Depression years we rarely saw him as he "humped the bluey" with thousands of other unemployed in a vain attempt to find work.
We survived the Depression but even as a child I resented a system that treated the ex-diggers from the First World War in such a cruel fashion.
In 1942 Australia was facing a real threat of invasion by the Japanese and I was called up for military service and became a Private in the Infantry. As raw recruits we were sent to Queensland for training which consisted mainly of weapons instruction, parade ground discipline and route marches.
One training exercise that I remember clearly was a war game when all units were allocated to one of two armies, either the Red Army or the Yellow Army and the Generals were moving their troops around like a game of chess, one trying to defend it's headquarters and the other trying to capture it. There were "impartial referees" who wore white armbands to make decisions about who won in each skirmish.
For some reason which reflects poorly on the judgement of our side's officers, I was given a turn as forward scout for our Army. We were on a track on the ridge of a mountain range and I was creeping along when I turned a corner and saw 2 individuals bent over the hood of a jeep looking down at something.
I raised my rifle above my head in a horizontal position, the signal to my second scout "Enemy ahead". I quietly moved closer and I saw that they were two officers, one was wearing an armband of the enemy and the other, the white armband of an "impartial referee".
Instead of retreating to my Company Commander to get further instructions, I decided to win the war myself and crept quietly up behind the enemy officer and the "impartial referee" who were closely examining a map. I poked my rifle in the enemy officer's back and said, "You are my prisoner". I think he shit himself and as he turned around I said "Bang" and shot him with my unloaded rifle.
I was quite elated until the old school tie system prevailed and the "impartial referee" said to me "Bad luck son. Your rifle misfired. You are now a prisoner of war."
I spent the rest of the week swimming in the surf beach at Caloundra and dining on food from their Officer's mess while my mates trudged around the Glasshouse Mountains.
This episode reinforced my contempt for the "born to rule" class.
In January 1943 we boarded a Liberty ship and sailed to Milne Bay. After Milne Bay was made secure we went to Finchhaven then to Lae and Madang. When the war finally ended, we went to Rabaul to supervise the Japanese prisoners.
Having survived the war I got a job as a printing machinist at the Melbourne Herald and after taking an active interest in trade union affairs, I was elected President of the Victorian Printers Operatives Union.
I also helped to establish a credit union at the Herald office and in 1970 I left my job as a printing machinist to become the first manager of the Herald Credit Union. This job, which I liked very much, did not last long as the then Secretary of the Victorian Printers Operatives Union died and I was prevailed upon to stand for, and I was elected to the position of Secretary of this Trade Union.
The 1970's and 80's were notable for big changes in both the newspaper printing industry with the introduction of computerised typesetting and in Australian politics with the election of the Whitlam and Hawke Governments and as Secretary of a printing union I was involved to some extent in the activities associated with these changes.
They were exciting times but after a few years I'd had enough and I resigned my job as Union Secretary.
I have an attractive wife who is Indonesian by birth; she is a descendant from a Sumatran Royal family and our wedding in Jakarta was a traditional Sumatran Royal Wedding.
Guests came from many parts of Indonesia and we received a big selection of wedding presents, one in particular I remember well. In deference to the Australian bridegroom, the guest, who obviously had a limited knowledge of the English language had selected a most elaborate card which said, "With deepest sympathy".
Another episode I remember about our wedding was the procedure I had to go through with Indonesian Government officials to get an Indonesian wedding certificate. We filled out the forms applying for the certificate. It asked "Place of birth" My answer "Daylesford, Victoria, Australia." That was too much for the system. According to the marriage certificate when we eventually got it, I was born in Sydney.
Date created: June 14, 2002.
Last Modified: July 6, 2006.
Author Albert Bonser
Email: Alby Bonser
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