Harry Cope Memorial Award for Literature 2004

At a Committee Meeting held on 11 June 2005 the President took great pleasure in announcing the Harry Cope Memorial Award for Literature for 2004 to David Tett for his 3 volume series: A Postal History of the Prisoners of War and Civilian Internees in East Asia During World War Two Visit David Tett's own web site at: http://www.fepowmail.com/ Volume 1 Singapore & Malaya 1942-1945 (The Changi Connection) The ability to communicate with their relatives is one of the precious lifelines for the prisoners in any war. For many it literally provided the will to live and the tenuous hold on life in those desperate years. The work covers all aspects of the mail to and from the prisoners of war and civilian internees: - arrangements in Australia and Britain for-the despatch of mail; - how the mail was forwarded and- distributed; - the role of the Red Cross; - the Japanese markings; - the work of the censors; - how the prisoners were able to send messages to their families and friends; - undelivered mails; and - wreck covers. Contains 400 illustrations on 400 pages with 8 colour plates. Volume 2 Dutch East Indies 1942-1946 (Paradise Lost) The main emphasis in 14 chapters is on Java and Sumatra but what is known about the postal history of the other territories is also covered. In 1942, with the fall of Singapore and other neighbouring territories, the Japanese invaded the country and within two weeks acquired the vast resources of the former Dutch colony. Life was never the same again. Servicemen of Dutch, British, Australian and American forces became POWs. All Dutch and other aliens were interned. The prisoners were incarcerated in over 300 camps. Chapter 15 contains information and illustrations acquired since the publication of Volume 1. The book contains extensive Appendices of items of mail studied, glossaries and bibliography and a comprehensive index. The book contains 470 pages with more than 500 illustrations. Volume 3 Burma, Thailand & Indochina 1942-1946 (The Railway, The River & The Bridge) This volume encompasses the story of the mails to and from Burma, Thailand and Indochina. The principal concentration of mail was to and from the Burma-Thailand railway, but mail from Bangkok Internment camp, the mails from civilian labourers, and the work of the Dutch Post Office in Bangkok are also extensively covered. Postal items to and from British, Dutch, Australian and American prisoners are illustrated. The handbook contains more than 400 illustrations and 378 pages.