AustLit

'During the Second World War 4,855 Australian residents of Italian origin were interned under the National Security Act. This represented one fifth of the total number of Australians of Italian origin. However seventy years later the internment story is not well remembered except by those families whose loved ones were snatched unexpectedly and imprisoned during the war.

'This book is the first publication in English of a day to day diary written by a detainee of an internment camp, and the diary records what it was like for civilians to be “captured” and placed in detention thousands of miles from home and held without trial for months and years.

'Mario Sardi, an Italian immigrant, spent 21 months behind barbed wire, from February 1942 to December 1943, in Loveday Internment camp 14A, in South Australia, a camp which was especially set up for the detention of Australian resident civilians.

'Sardi tells of the daily routines of camp life, and what they did to overcome the monotony of having nothing to do, while being locked up under army control.

'He describes their activities, the musical and theatrical evenings, poetry readings, educational pursuits, and sports such as soccer and bocce. Other passtimes included playing practical jokes, carving mulga wood and especially playing cards, which took up a lot of time. Sardi records his games - who he played with and the winners and losers, and how much gambling went on although it was strictly forbidden.

'The diary has been set in the context of the war and Australian society by Melbourne historian and academic, Ilma Martinuzzi O'Brien, who has included details taken from official records relating to many of those mentioned in the diary. Material from their dossiers gives the information used for their capture, and in many cases reveals the arbitrary and unfair grounds for their detention.

'These internees were all legitimate and accepted immigrants, and about a quarter of them had become naturalized British subjects, and some were even Australian born. Yet despite the difficult treatment they received, after the war they resumed their lives and went on to make an important contribution to Australia.

'The internment story highlights one of the dilemmas of a democracy - a tension between individual rights on the one hand, and national security interests on the other. By providing a close and personal account of the impact of wartime detention on the families and communities concerned, the book encourages reflection on the appropriate balance between individual rights and protection of the community.' (Publication summary)