"The Last Raid"
(Operation
Claret 1966 Indonesian Borneo)
March 1966, L Company and M Company of 42 Commando Royal Marines took part in an ambitious Claret Operation, to raid an Indonesian camp at Sedjingan across the border into Indonesian Kalimantan, the Indonesian camp was garrisoned by members of the Siliwang Division one of the crack formations of their army.
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After marching from their respective Company bases at Biawak and Samatan in western Sarawak, L and M companies rendezvoused the day before the raid two miles away from their target. A successful close reconnaissance had been carried out by Lt Clark of L company. And at one stage Cpl Pearce got to within five yards of Indonesian sentries without being spotted. That close to the sentries that one of them urinated on the bush behind which Cpl Pearce was crouching; again escaping detection. |
As a result of Lt Clark's report, it was decided that L Company would attack the camp at first light, while M Company ambushed the likely enemy withdrawal routes. This necessitated M Company moving into position in full daylight the evening before, which they managed without detection.
The next day the attack went in as planned, both parts of the operation being succesful, and the Indonesian army sustaining considerable casualties.
During L Company's withdrawal, Lt Clark'was hit by a stray round and Killed; his body was evacuated by helicopter. Also during the withdrawal L/cpl T.J.Collins who manned the LMG was found to be missing, L/cpl Collins was posted missing in action presumed killed. He just disappeared during the withdrawal action, Later on seaches were made, but to no avail, and after the confrontation enquiries were made but also proved negative due to the Indonesian authorities lack of co-operation.
In March 1966 General Suharto replaced Sukarno in a coup, and secret peace feelers were sent to Kuala Lumpur. Although Claret operations were halted, the British continued to reconnoitre across the Border into Indonesian Borneo to give warnings of incursions. On 28th of May 1966, cross-border activity ceased, and on the 11th of August the end of confrontation was ratified. A peace that brought an end to the strange undeclared war in Borneo, a war that rarely hit the headlines. The stamina and health of the British, Gurkha and Commonwealth soldiers had withstood the stress and rigours of operating for long periods in some of the toughest terrain in the world. |
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The Borneo Campaign stands out as being a notable example of how highly trained professional infantrymen, with full support from the other arms and services, can achieve a decisive victory against a well-armed and aggressive foe.
DEDICATED
TO THE MEMORY
OF
L/CPL J.T. COLLINS.
An'
after I met 'im all over the world, a-doin' all kinds of things,
Like
landin' isself with a Gatlin' gun to talk to them 'eathen Kings.
(Kipling)
L/Cpl. Thomas Joseph Collins was killed in action on the 16th March 1966, while serving with 42 Royal Marine Commando in Borneo during the Indonesian confrontation. His body was taken from where he fell and buried in the cemetery of a Kampong (village) called Sebedang. His identity was unknown to the Indonesians who buried him and marked the grave with a simple wooden cross. Sadly the grave was quickly covered with vegetation and forgotten.
Twenty-five years later, following a request by his mother for a renewed search for her son's body, a request was made to the Indonesian authorities for assistance in locating the gravesite. The story came to an end on the 5th of May 1992, when the remains of L/Cpl T. J. Collins were placed in a simple wooden coffin and in the presence of Col. R. I. L. Ker, the British Defence Attaché, was flown to Jakarta escorted by members of the Indonesian Armed Forces. There on the 14th of May, in a formal ceremony, the British Ambassador, Mr. Roger Carrick, accepted the remains of L/Cpl. Collins from an Air Vice Marshal of the Indonesian Air Force. The remains of L/Cpl. Collins were flown to the United Kingdom the same day for a family reburial. Present at the ceremony in Jakarta were fifty Indonesian military personnel, the Defence and Naval Attaches and their wives, and former C/Sgt. Ron Mills Royal Marines.
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