Lapel badge, Zentsujians International : W H Larkin

Gilt and enamel lapel badge of Zentsujians International. The badge consists of a blue circle set against a 5-pointed star outlined in gold, with the upper / northern point of the star coloured red, the horizontal points coloured white and the two lower points coloured blue. The inner blue circle features a globe with intersecting longitudinal and latitudinal lines in gold. The globe also features a stylised 'Z', in gold, in its centre. Around the globe written in gold are the words 'ZENTSUJIANS' (upper) and 'INTERNATIONAL' (lower).

This type of badge is worn by members of a group set up by prisoners of war from Zentsuji Camp from the island Shikoku, Japan. This specific badge is associated with Lieutenant William Henry Larkin, an engineer who served with Lark Force and was interned at Zentsuji prisoner of war camp, after being captured by Japanese forces near Rabaul, New Britain in January 1942. Larkin was born in Kew, Victoria in 1920 and served in the Militia prior to the outbreak of hostilities in 1939. At this time Larkin was a member of 34 Fortress Company and in 1940 he volunteered for overseas service with Lark Force, being commissioned as Lieutenant and disembarking for Rabaul in April 1941. Lark Force, like other bird forces in Ambon (Gull Force) and Timor (Sparrow Force), was charged with defending Allied interests in the islands north of Australia and also to provide early warning of Japanese movements there. When the Japanese invaded New Britain, Lark Force was overwhelmed and the officers, Larkin included, were eventually transported to Zentsuji prisoner of war camp in Japan. Here, the Australians were joined by a large contingent of Americans, as well as soldiers and some civilians of British, Dutch, New Zealand and Fijian origin. In June 1945, the camp was split up into its various nationalities and transported to other camps throughout Japan. The Australians from Rabual were sent to Sendai on the island of Honshu, though they were liberated just a few weeks later. Larkin was repatriated to Australia shortly after, officially leaving the Army in November 1945, though remaining on the Officers' Reserve list. The 'Zentsujians' or 'Z' graduates, hold reunions regularly in the United States.