Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Perooz James ‘Juma’ Percy (300184), of ‘dark complexion’, was born in 1913 in Burke, New South Wales. He was a son of Morbine Perooz, an Afghan ex-soldier who fought with the British Army, a respected cameleer in Australia. His mother, Margaret, was an Australian. He was married, and worked as a radio service mechanic and motor mechanic. As a community broadcaster, Juma Perooz became popular across vast tracts of the outback in the early 1930s. His voice, indeed, became recognisable across thousands of square miles, for Juma started the first radio station at Bourke, broadcasting as far as Western Australia. As a teenager, he travelled to Sydney and completed a course in radio-telepathy and voice transmission. He established a small studio in a garden shed at his parents’ home in Bourke. He recruited local musicians and installed a piano in his improvised studio alongside the gramophone and a number of records. Juma broadcasted until the outbreak of war, when his voice salienced as he was prepared for ‘another adventure’.

In 1935, he applied to enrol in the RAAF, completing all enrolment procedures. Prior to serving in the RAAF, he already had five years’ experience in amateur radio and four years as a wireless mechanic. He enlisted in 1935 in Burke and served in the RAAF In 1940 he successfully completed an Initial Armament Course for Air Gunners. While his radio program was silent, and ‘the distances were too great for casual banter’, Juma, like many lads of his age, was alone with his thoughts to do his bit, spending a number of years in the RAAF as a wireless air-gunner in the Mediterranean.

James Percy Perooz joined the RAAF in 1939. His service included the Middle East with 3 Squadron and signalling, holding the rank of Warrant Officer. In 1941, while in Ramlah, Palestine, Perooz accidentally wounded himself in an ankle while also grazing his big toe when he was cleaning his automatic pistol. He went to hospital where he was recommended for re-education in walking. He also suffered from asthma. When he recovered, he continued his military duties. He was discharged in 1945 and was issued with the 1949/45 Star, the Africa Star and the Pacific Star. After the war, the Governor-in-Council approved a number of persons to be appointed to the Commission of the Peace for the State of New South Wales, including James Percy Perooz.

From the book:

Dzavid Haveric, 'A History of Muslims in the Australian Military from 1885 to 1945: Loyalty, Patriotism, Contribution’, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, London, 2024