Pages - Menu

Monday, March 7, 2011

Australian students set to participate in Sandakan Death March Trek

SANDAKAN, the site of Japan’s worst wartime atrocity on Australian troops, will soon be revisited by group of young Australians eager to foster a greater understanding of each other and our shared history.

On April 9, four students will join youngsters from Cronulla and the bush to trace the steps of the notorious death marches endured by Australian prisoners of war in Borneo in 1945.

Sam Jalloh from Punchbowl Boys’ High, Katherine Kopsaris from Bankstown’s St Euphemia College, Chanel Steiner from Bankstown Girls’ High and Issa Jebara from Granville South High will depart Australia for the Sandakan Mateship Trek 2011 on Friday, April 8.

They will be joined by parliamentarians including Blaxland Labor MP Jason Clare, Cook Liberal MP and Shadow Immigration Minister Scott Morrison and Lyne independent MP Rob Oakeshott, as well as Punchbowl Boys’ principal Jihad Dib and eight youngsters from other regions.

Together the group will walk along the notorious trail where more than 2420 Australian and British troops died at the hands of Japanese forces.

“Sick and starving PoWs were forced to march 260km from Sandakan to Ranau in 1945,” Mr Clare said.

Continue reading (Incl. Pic) at: Australian students set to participate in Sandakan Death March Trek
.
.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Infolinks