More than 2000 Australian and British men died at Sandakan and Ranau during the Second World War.

“Although my father may well have lived to see the end of the war, he most definitely did not survive the experience of Sandakan, which haunted him until his dying day,” Susan said.

She shared with attendees at Sunday’s Sandakan Memorial Service the harrowing story of a man tormented by unimaginable horrors – one of only two survivors who saw the entire sequence of events at Sandakan unfold.

Lance Bombardier Moxham was an important source of evidence to the War Crimes Commission.

But that’s not why Susan chose to share her story.

She sought to highlight the trauma war inflicts on those directly involved in conflict, and those who love them. 

“My family’s experience is not unique,” Susan said.

“It is the same for so many families living with an ex-soldier or ex-Prisoner of War who has witnessed and become a participant in violent military conflict.”

Few appeared unaffected as Susan recounted episodes in which she, her siblings and mother feared for their lives at the hands of a loved one.

The violence proved too much for the family and tore it apart. 

Susan said her father’s treatments for what was then classed as ‘war neurosis’ – now Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder – included electroconvulsive therapy.

Lance Bombardier Moxham took his own life on his 48^th birthday.

Much has changed since her father returned from war, but Susan said the need to support veterans and their families was as great as ever. 

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