Aurukun People War Memorial Print Page

The memorial commemorates the indigenous personnel who served in World War One and World War Two. The memorial lists the names of 11 men from Aurukun who joined the Torres Light Infantry in World War Two. 

On September 13 1943, eleven men from the remote indigenous community enlisted and joined the Torres Strait Light Infantry. An Australian Water Transport Group vessel had visited Aurukun, Weipa and Mapoon, specifically to recruit Aboriginal men. Many of those men had worked in the pearling lugger fleets that plied Torres Strait in those days. The military placed a high value on their knowledge of the remote Cape country & the challenging seas around Cape York.

Exact details of their military service are not known, but the Torres Strait Light Infantry Battalion played a vital role in protecting the maritime borders of far north Queensland and supporting the effort against Japanese forces in Papua New Guinea. It’s not well known that after Darwin, Horn Island, in the Torres Strait, was the second most attacked piece of Australian territory during World War Two. In all, 870 men from Cape York & Torres Strait served with the Light Infantry.

At the ANZAC Day service in 2015, two specially-cast bronze plaques were placed on either side of the roll. The plaques celebrate Aurukun’s connection to its brothers in the Torres Strait, where soldiers from Aurukun joined the defence contingent in the Torres Strait Light Infantry Battalion. The two plaques depict local soldiers in uniform and an appropriate Australian military crest. The plaques were mainly funded through Queensland Government’s ANZAC Centenary Grants Program.

The historic 100th Anniversary of ANZAC is being celebrated by the Aurukun Shire Council with the unveiling of two specially-cast bronze plaques on ANZAC Day this year.

A special event will be held at the remote Far North Queensland community’s ANZAC memorial site to commemorate Aurukun’s linkages to ANZAC.

The Mayor of Aurukun, Cr Dereck Walpo, said the magnificent plaques celebrate Aurukun’s connection to its brothers in the Torres Strait, where soldiers from Aurukun joined the defence contingent in the Torres Strait Light Infantry Battalion. “The two plaques depict local soldiers in uniform and an appropriate Australian military crest,” Cr Walpo said. “We make a special effort to always engage the youth in the community so that they are properly educated about Aurukun's efforts in World War I and World War II for Australia,” he said. “We want to acknowledge and pay respect to the people of Aurukun who have served Australia.”

During World War II, 11 Aurukun men enlisted and joined the Torres Strait Light Infantry Battalion, which played a vital role in protecting the maritime borders of Far North Queensland, and supporting the effort against Japanese forces in Papua New Guinea. It is not well known that after Darwin, Horn Island in the Torres Strait was the second most attacked piece of Australian territory during World War II.

In all, 870 men from Cape York and the Torres Strait served with the Torres Strait Light Infantry Battalion. The 11 men from Aurukun who joined up were:

• Johnny Bandicootcha
• Charlie Bob Ngakyunkwokka
• Billy Buttons Woolla
• Callum Woolla
• Billy Comprabar
• Johnnie Lac Lac Ampeybegan
• Charlie Warnkoola
• Billy Panjee Peinkyekka
• Sandy Pootchemunka
• Tommy Toikalkin
• Frank Wolmby.

“These plaques will greatly enhance the existing ANZAC memorial in Aurukun."
North Queensland Register, 1 April 2015.

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