Talk:Battle of North Borneo

Comments
As some slightly belated comments in response to a request from AR:
 * The background section should go into the goals for this operation in some detail - the Battle of Labuan article covers this. A key issue is the strategic value of the operation, given that a key goal was to capture a base for the British Pacific Fleet which the British definitely did not want to ever use (as doing so would have sidelined the BPF from the main campaign against Japan).
 * The nature of the Japanese occupation should also be noted: a benefit of this campaign is that it liberated civilians from harsh treatment.
 * I'd suggest an 'opposing forces' type section. The shambolic state of the Japanese forces is important to emphasise, as it explains why the campaign was so one-sided. The 9th Division was also one of the best Allied units anywhere.
 * The pre-invasion air campaign isn't noted at present
 * The 'battle' section would benefit from being split into sub-sections. The coverage of the campaign in Brunei and to the south of the town could be expanded a bit.
 * More detail on the Japanese side of the campaign would be helpful - e.g., that their main priority was to withdraw (which also helps to explain why there wasn't much fighting - the only battles were at Labuan where the garrison couldn't escape despite being authorised to do so and at Beaufort where the Japanese were trying to protect a key line of retreat.
 * The guerrilla campaign could be covered in more detail, as it was pretty big.
 * The civil affairs effort could be covered in more detail - for instance, noting the role and failings of the British civilian administration which was basically elbowed aside by the 9th Division
 * "Such was the relationship formed between the 9th Division and the civilian population of North Borneo, that the division's Unit Colour Patch was incorporated into the coat of arms of the Colony of British Borneo following the war, remaining as such until 1963" - I'm a bit sceptical of this, given that the coat of arms was that of the colonial government which the locals had no say over. Allied forces caused widespread destruction as part of this campaign, though they seem to have been welcomed by most of the locals. It would be interesting to reflect on how modern Malaysians regard the operation, as there seem to be quite a few local non-Australian funded memorials. Nick-D (talk) 10:02, 20 November 2019 (UTC)
 * G'day, Nick, thanks, quite a list -- I'll get started on it. Regarding the last point, I've attributed it in text now. From what I can tell, the coat of arms does seem include the division's T shape UCP, see: File:Coat of arms of the Crown Colony of North Borneo.svg. Happy to reword if you think there's a better way to incorporate this. Regards, AustralianRupert (talk) 08:13, 21 November 2019 (UTC)
 * G'day, Nick, I think I have addressed these points now. Would you mind taking another look and letting me know if anything needs a bit more attention? Regards, AustralianRupert (talk) 00:54, 24 November 2019 (UTC)