Book details

Book description

This is the gripping story of a small force of Australian Special Forces commandos that launched relentless hit and run raids on far superior Japanese forces in East Timor for most of 1942. The men of the 2/2nd Australian Independent Company were a special commando unit. Initially stranded without radio contact to Australia, the Japanese declared these beared warriors 'outlaws' and warned they would be executed immediately if captured. The Australians, drawn mainly from the bush, were chosen for their ability to operate independently and survive in hostile territory. As film-maker Damien Parer said after visiting in Timor in late 1942, 'these men are writing an epic of guerrilla warfare'. A cracker of a read, it would make an excellent TV documentary.' Paul Cleary is a senior writer with THE AUSTRALIAN newspaper and a researcher in Indigenous development at the Australian National University. His work on the Timor Sea resource negotiations led to his first non-fiction book, SHAKEDOWN: AUSTRALIA'S GRAB FOR TIMOR OIL. He speaks several languages, including Vietnamese and Tetum.