The Kitchener history overlaps with many other histories from the wartime period, and the deportation of Jewish refugees to Canada and Australia is one such overlap.
The notorious voyage of HMT Dunera was particularly significant. When news got out about the terrible conditions in which the men were being deported overseas, public opinion swung against the internment of German-speaking refugees.
This meant that releases from internment began only a few weeks after the government policy of mass internment had started in early summer 1940.
We believe that 239 Kitchener refugees were put on board HMT Dunera for internment in Australia in July 1940.
The Dunera Association has just launched their new website and asked if we could post up the following information.
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Dunera Association Website Launch
We are pleased to announce the launching of our new website
There is a wealth of information for your use, including all the Dunera News issues published to date, links to many organizations, past and future events, membership information and much more.
We have designed the website to be more inclusive of the Singapore Internees segment of our membership; the stories of both the Singapore Internees and the Dunera Boys appear in the first few pages of the website.
We hope you enjoy our website.
Dr Peter Felder
President
Dunera Association Inc