5. Enemy Aliens and Internees

By any criterion, the progress of Jews in Australia must be seen as a ‘success story’, particularly in the context of the 20th century Jewish experience internationally. As W D Rubinstein has observed of the postwar period specifically, Jewish life ‘has continued to flourish and develop in this remote and isolated continent, in a way that many from the larger Jewish communities would not credit’.[47]

This is not to say, however, that the progress has been consistently smooth. As noted earlier, the assimilation dilemma which afflicted the community in the late 19th century, and which reached crisis point by the 1920s, was precipitated (at least in part) by fears of antisemitism. While usually peripheral and confined mostly to the fringes of the political spectrum, a minor vein of antisemitism has always been a factor with which Australian Jews have had to contend.

As ‘foreigners’, ‘aliens’ and ‘newcomers’, migrant Jews have also borne the brunt of heightened nationalism and xenophobia during periods of international conflict. Many migrant Jews found themselves objects of official concern or suspicion during World War I and World War II (as former citizens or residents of hostile nations) and frequently found themselves classified as ‘enemy aliens’, subject even to incarceration.

Similarly, after the Russian Revolution in 1917, the prominence of individual Jews in global revolutionary movements reinforced myths that Jews were intent on world domination, and coloured public perceptions of Jewish loyalty. In the wake of 1945, and with the emergence of the Cold War, the seemingly disproportionate involvement of individual Jews in left-wing politics or radical organisations elicited official concern at a nexus between Jewish migrants and communism. This is discussed in more detail in Chapter 6.

This chapter focuses on government records dealing with the definition and classification of Jews as aliens and enemy aliens during wartime. It includes sources regarding the internment process and the Dunera affair.

Alien registration

Prior to 1914, the special branches of state police departments had responsibility for monitoring the activities of radical political groups or suspect individuals. This situation changed following the outbreak of World War I due to concerns about security, the activities of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) and the conscription debate. With Australia actively involved as a British ‘dominion’ in the war, the Federal Government enacted alien registration regulations, under the War Precautions Act, and in 1916 the Special Intelligence Bureau was created in Melbourne within the Prime Minister’s Department. Most records of Commonwealth investigations into suspected groups or persons date from that time.[48]

The War Precautions Regulations demanded that all currently resident non-citizens (over 15 years of age), or those entering the country, must be registered as ‘aliens’. The regulations were replaced by the Aliens Registration Act 1920, which remained in force until 1926. Aliens were required to submit registration forms at the nearest police station. The forms in question are a useful source of basic biographical detail on non-naturalised persons, and an often valuable supplement to naturalisation and other immigrant records.

Form A1 (for aliens resident in the Commonwealth before 1916) includes full name, nationality, birthplace, birthdate, occupation, usual place of abode, place of business, date of entry into the Commonwealth, a personal description, and signature (occasionally in Hebrew). Some cards also contain a thumbprint. In addition to the above details, Form A2 (for aliens entering the Commonwealth after 1916) includes name of vessel, port of embarkation, place of abode (abroad), and passport particulars. Registration requirements remained in force until June 1926. Therefore, aliens registration (or application) forms may provide detail on individuals until that date. The forms are held at several locations. For example:

‘Enemy aliens’ and internment (World War II)

As in World War I, the situation and status of German and Italian-speaking refugees (and others) changed dramatically once war had been declared. Registration requirements were reintroduced through the Aliens Registration Act 1939 and National Security (Aliens Control) Regulations 1939. Restrictions were imposed almost immediately on identified individuals (including those who arrived shortly after the formal declaration of war). ‘Enemy aliens’ were required to register with, and report regularly to, their local police station, and to obtain formal leave before travelling outside their area of residence. The possession (without permit) of cameras, radios, binoculars, motor vehicles, motorboats, firearms, even carrier-pigeons, was prohibited. In some cases (as in World War I), individuals or families were kept under surveillance by Government security agencies. For example, records of investigation of known or suspected enemy sympathisers by the NSW Branch of the Commonwealth Security Service, are located in the following series:

INVESTIGATION FILES (PERSONS AND ORGANISATIONS), ALPHA-NUMERIC SERIES, 1942–46			C320
Recorded by:	1942–1945	Commonwealth Security Service, NSW (CA 946)
	1945–1946	Commonwealth Investigation Branch, NSW (CA 904)
	Quantity:	4.5 metres (Sydney)
	NSW Security Service file – Enemy aliens released from internment [2 pages, box 9], 1940–44		C320, 134
Also among records of the NSW branch of the Commonwealth Security Service is a series of dossiers on former German Jews in Australia, originally compiled by the German Consulate:
DOSSIERS ON JEWS RESIDENT IN AUSTRALIA COMPILED BY THE GERMAN CONSULATE, 1943–57			C422
Recorded by:	1943–1945	Security Service, NSW (CA 946)
	Quantity:	0.36 metres (Sydney)
	This is a series of dossiers (113 files) dealing with Jews resident in Australia.
	[Rudolf Klein], 1939		C422, 1
	[Herman Koenig], 1938		C422, 14
	[Alfred, Johanna and Rosel Rosenberg], 1938		C422, 26
	[Karl Israel Plessner], 1939		C422, 34
	[Julius Hermann Israel and Clara Sara Schneeweiss], 1939		C422, 83
	[Alice Perl], 1939		C422, 102
A German Jewish refugee volunteering for the Australian war effort. NAA: MP508/1, 275/703/1
Some records of dealings, under the National Security Regulations, with individual alien emigrants can be located in the correspondence of the various customs services. For example:
GENERAL AND CLASSIFIED CORRESPONDENCE, ANNUAL SINGLE NUMBER SERIES, 1902–			B13
Recorded by:	1902–1985	Collector of Customs, Melbourne (CA 789)
	Quantity:	54.90 metres (Melbourne)
	H D Brasch, German Jew ex-‘Strathmore’ – re return of Camera, 1939		B13, 1939/50754
Official perspectives or policy and memoranda and other correspondence dealing with the ‘enemy aliens’ issue are located in:
DEFENCE ARMY SERIES (401), 1936–45			MP729/6
Recorded by:	1936–1939	Department of Defence (II), Central Administration (CA 19)
	1939–1945	Department of the Army, Central Office (CA 36)
	Quantity:	26 metres (Melbourne)
	Refugees: Internment, Fifth Columnists, 1940		MP729/6, 29/401/273
	Internees, 1939		MP729/6, 63/401/10
	Alien Immigration, Refugees, etc, 1939		MP 729/6, 65/401/12
	Control of Enemy Aliens, 1940		MP729/6, 65/401/50
CORRESPONDENCE FILES, SINGLE NUMBER SERIES, 1941–49			A373
Recorded by:	1941–1945	Security Service, Central Office, Canberra (CA 660)
	1945–1946	Investigation Branch, Central Office, Melbourne and Canberra (CA 747)
	1946–1949	Commonwealth Investigation Service, Central Office (CA 650)
	Quantity:	7 metres (Canberra)
	Control of enemy aliens, 1941–43		A373, 578
	Internments and Releases Policy, internment of enemy aliens – Representations by various organisations, 1942		A373, 1272
	National service for refugee and enemy aliens, 1942–43		A373, 3644
	Status and position of enemy aliens on discharge from Defence Forces of the Commonwealth, 1943		A373, 4840
	Control of enemy aliens. Travel permits, change of abode, etc., 1942–45		A373, 8218
CORRESPONDENCE FILES, T SERIES, 1943–45			A376
Recorded by:	1943–1945	Security Service, Tasmania (CA 748)
	Quantity:	0.1 metres (Canberra)
	Enemy Aliens, 1940		A376, T252
	Enemy aliens – orders to report, 1939–44		A376, T129
	Restriction Orders – Enemy aliens, 1939–51		A376, T135
	Aliens Control. Prohibited Possessions. Lists German, Austrian and Italian nationals registered in Tasmania as enemy aliens, 1939–45		A376, T212
CORRESPONDENCE FILES, MULTIPLE NUMBER SERIES WITH ALPHABETICAL PREFIX, 1928–56			A518
Recorded by:	1928–1941	Territories Branch, Prime Minister’s Department (CA 822)
	1941–1951	Department of External Territories (I) (CA 42)
	Quantity:	199.15 metres (Canberra)
	Defence – Enemy Aliens – Internees, escorts, etc, 1939–45		A518, A016/2/1
CORRESPONDENCE FILES, ANNUAL SINGLE NUMBER SERIES, 1901–76			A571
Recorded by:	1901–1976	Department of the Treasury (I), Central Office (CA 11)
	Quantity:	714.35 metres (Canberra)
	Military and other compulsory service for Refugee and enemy aliens, 1942–45		A571, 1942/538
GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE FILES, CLASS 1 (GENERAL, PASSPORTS), 1939–50			A659
Recorded by:	1939–1945	Department of the Interior (II), Central Office (CA 31)
	Quantity:	101.25 metres (Canberra)
	List of enemy aliens naturalised Jul 1935 – Dec 1939, 1940 Organised by State and Territory, then alphabetically for each time-frame, this file provides details on Italian and German nationals including full name, address, date of birth and naturalisation certificate number, eg Zara Hallenstein and Max Herz, Sydney; Alfred Klein and Anita Rosenberg, Melbourne.		A659, 1940/1/8030
	Internment of Enemy aliens – Appeals against, 1940–41		A659, 1940/1/8379
CORRESPONDENCE FILES, MULTI–NUMBER SERIES WITH VARIABLE ALPHABETICAL PREFIX AND GENERAL PREFIX ‘SC’ (FOURTH SYSTEM), 1939–47			A1608
Recorded by:	1939–1945	Prime Minister’s Department (CA 12)
	Quantity:	21.97 metres (Canberra)
	War 1939. Position of Aliens and Refugees – Time of War, 1939		A1608, N19/1/1 part 1
GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE, 1942–46			CP436/2
Recorded by:	1943–1945	Fisheries Co–ordinating Authority, Department of War Organisation Industry (CA 79)
	1945–1946	Fisheries Division (a) Post–war Reconstruction (CA 2104)
	Quantity:	3.60 metres (Canberra)
	This general, ‘undifferentiated’ series contains staff files, labour force surveys, policy records and ministerial correspondence.
	Enemy Aliens, 1944–45		CP436/2, BUNDLE 9/962/8
INVESTIGATION CASE FILES, SINGLE NUMBER SERIES WITH ‘SS’ PREFIX, 1942–46			D1919
Recorded by:	1942–1946	Investigation Branch South Australia (CA 905)
	Quantity:	2 metres (Adelaide)
	Files in this series cover a range of subjects, including aliens (registration and control), revocation of naturalisation, passports, internees, espionage and censorship.
	Stateless Aliens [National Security (Aliens Control) Legislation – Registration of Stateless Aliens], 1942		D1919, SS959
ARMY GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE, 1939–42			MP508/1
Recorded by:	1939–1942	Department of the Army, Central Office (CA 36)
	Quantity:	0.72 metres (Melbourne)
	Cameras – Property of enemy aliens, 1942		MP508/1, 4/703/1169
	Status of Refugee Aliens, 1942		MP508/1, 4/703/1190
	Nationality of Refugee Jews. Definition of ‘Enemy Alien’, 1942		MP508/1, 115/703/455
Commonwealth security measures during World War II included the internment of a number of German-speaking and Italian-speaking emigrants suspected of ‘subversive activities’ and a number of ‘enemy nationals’ who arrived in Australia after war was declared in September 1939. The adult male members of a party of 250 refugee men, women and children (mostly Jews) who came to Australia from Singapore on the troop ship Queen Mary in 1940 were promptly despatched to Tatura, for instance. The National Archives substantial holdings on World War II internees, include the following:
DOSSIERS CONTAINING REPORTS ON INTERNEES AND PRISONERS OF WAR HELD IN AUSTRALIAN CAMPS, SINGLE NUMBER SERIES WITH ALPHABETICAL PREFIX, 1939–45			MP1103/2
Recorded by:	1939–1945	Prisoners of War Information Bureau (CA 3055)
	Quantity:	18.29 metres (Victoria)
	The files contain Forms A111, A114 and A111A, setting out all vital identification and property assessment information on each POW or internee.
	Report on Internee – Menasche Bodner (Polish Jew), 1940		MP1103/2, E39191
	Report on Internee – Fritz Levy (German Jew), 1940		MP1103/2, E40054
DOSSIERS CONCERNING INTERNEES, SINGLE NUMBER SERIES, 1942–45			C123
Recorded by:	1942–1945	Commonwealth Security Service, NSW (CA 946)
	Quantity:	36.36 metres (Sydney)
	This series consists of dossiers on persons interned in NSW during World War II.
	Seigbert Simon Israel COHEN – German Jew [Security Service, NSW, Dossier] [Box 8], 1939–44		C123, 1236
	Fritz ROEHRICHT alias Frederick REED – German (Jew) [Security Service, NSW, Dossier] [Box 11], 1942-45		C123, 1310
	Albert William HOFFMAN – Jewish [Security Service, NSW, Dossier] [box 12], 1939–42		C123, 1321
	SUERBACH, Joseph and Stella – Austrian – Jewish refugee [Security Service, NSW, dossier] [16 pages, box 23], 1939–40		C123, 1708
Access to C123 can be facilitated by searching three subsequent – and related – series, all recorded by the Commonwealth Security Service, NSW:
KEY TO DOSSIERS, NUMERICAL REGISTER, 1939–45			C124
NATIONALITY INDEX CARDS TO DOSSIERS OF INTERNEES, 1942–45			C126
NOMINAL INDEX CARDS (BY CITIZENSHIP) TO DOSSIERS ON INTERNEES, 1942-45			C125

The Dunera affair

By far the best known (and most notorious) instance of wartime internment in Australia was the Dunera affair. Following the fall of France and the evacuation of Dunkirk, the British Government responded to public panic over the ‘enemy within’ and temporarily interned thousands of foreign nationals. Canada and Australia agreed to assist the ‘mother country’ with the process and, accordingly, in July 1940, HMT Dunera set sail from Liverpool to Sydney, carrying 2 542 male ‘enemy aliens.’ Although the group included some 250 German Nazis and 200 Italian Fascists, the vast majority of the deportees were strongly anti-Fascist and two-thirds of them were Jews.

The harrowing circumstances of the Dunera’s voyage out to Australia have been documented by Bartrop, Pearl and Patkin, among others. The maltreatment of prisoners by sections of the British escort troops earned the Dunera the label ‘hellship.’[50] On arrival in Melbourne in September 1940, 500 deportees were disembarked and transferred to the Tatura internment camp while the remaining men and youths went on to Sydney and were transferred to the Hay camps and, subsequently, to Tatura.

Intense criticism of the deportation and incarceration of unfortunate persons, most of them totally opposed to the Nazi regime, was voiced both in Britain and Australia, and resulted in the British Government expressing regret for the incident as early as October 1940. Major Julian Layton of the Home Office was sent to Australia to assist with the repatriation process. Charges were laid against a number of the Dunera guards, and compensation payments were allocated to the deportees. Bureaucratic delays and inefficiency notwithstanding, the internees were all released in due course. Some 900 elected to remain in Australia, and a substantial number of them served with Australia’s defence forces, notably in the 8th Employment Company.

A large number of pertinent records can be located on the National Archives database, using keyword access (eg ‘Dunera’, ‘Tatura’, ‘Enemy Aliens’, ‘Internees’). Some additional records can be gleaned from hard-copy series listings. Paul Bartrop and Gabrielle Eisen have provided researchers with an invaluable sampling (and overview) of both official (government) and unofficial records of the ‘Dunera affair’ in their comprehensive selection of documents under that title.[51] Records of the voyage of the Dunera, the experiences at the Hay, Tatura and Loveday camps of the Dunera boys and other Jewish refugees who had escaped Europe via Malaya, etc, and the participation of many former internees in the 8th Employment Company, can be found in the following series: