Donald Barnby
Green, A. (1999). Air evacuation of wounded Timorese by RNZAF helicopters. Defence Imagery.
Donald Barnby has had an interesting career, serving both in the Army in the Vietnam War and then as an Australian Federal Police (AFP) Officer who deployed on 3 international peacekeeping missions.
He left school early, eager to join the Army.
‘I was always interested in a military career, school Cadets, and I didn't even wait around to do my Leaving,’ Don said. ‘I left early much to the disappointment of my parents, and literally was at the door of the recruiting office a few days after I was 17.'
Don served in Vietnam with 2nd Squadron, Special Air Service Regiment, then joined the AFP in 1973. With the AFP, Don deployed several times as part of peace operations, including in Cyprus and Bougainville.
Don came out of retirement to join the AFP contingent assigned to the United Nations effort to organise, conduct and supervise a referendum in East Timor held on 30 August 1999. A vote for autonomy would have seen East Timor remain part of Indonesia, but with certain powers of self-governance. However, the vote of the people was overwhelmingly to be recognised as a separate and independent country.
Donald recalled: 'I'd just come back from a European trip, and a friend of mine who was the Assistant Commissioner of Personnel rang me up, and he said, “Do you know what's happening in Timor?” and I said, “Oh yeah, I've read a bit,” and he said, “How would you like to come back into the AFP with your old badge number back and head up the training? We're sending a contingent up there.”
'Our main role was to protect the electoral offices and set up a registration and electoral scenario so that they could hold a popular consultation, and also, as a secondary role, investigate incidents of atrocities that they came to us with.'
Following the vote for independence, the pro-Indonesian militia launched a campaign of destruction, arson, and murder, killing approximately 1,500 people and forcing 300,000 others into West Timor as refugees. The unarmed AFP personnel witnessed the worst of the killings during their deployment, but there was nothing they could do.
‘That literally broke me,’ said Don. ‘Timor was pretty tragic, and I got horribly sick – typhoid, dengue and all that sort of stuff – but mentally that was it … That was my last one, and that was by far the worst.’
Twenty years later, Don travelled back to Timor-Leste with a group of fellow peacekeepers for the 20th anniversary of the independence vote.
‘We went back, and we were all anxious, because we had told the Timorese, and believed it, that we would stay and "We will try and help you and protect you, even if it all goes to custard.”
‘The hostess got everyone else off the plane… One of us looked out the window to the terminal and there were all these Timorese school kids lined up and officials, and they were happy to see us. Twenty years ago, gunfire and screams, now music and laughter. It was just gorgeous.’
If you would like to see Donald Barnby’s recollections from his storied career as a soldier and AFP peacekeeper, you can watch the videos on our Anzac Portal.