Michael Keon
Encyclopedia
Michael Keon was an Australian political journalist and author. His articles and books mainly focus on Asian politics and the military actions that surround the changes and transitions in political power.
, Victoria
. Michael married Elizabeth Marcos, a member of the Philippine political family, and sister of Ferdinand Marcos
. Their son is the Filipino politician Michael Marcos Keon
.
During World War II
Keon work for the Department of Information
(D.O.I.), a branch of the Australian Government. In November 1945 he and fellow journalist Geoffrey Sawer broadcast a series of three short-wave radio reports criticizing the policies of the Great Britain, the United States, and the Dutch
(who controlled much of the country) of their activities in Indonesia
, and their hypocrisy (mainly the U.S.) in ignoring the plight of the country and the Indonesian people. The broadcasts caused a backlash in that one arm of the government was criticizing another, and these transmissions were themselves criticized, prompting a ministerial investigation into broadcast policy, and the resignation of the short-wave division head, William Macmahon Ball
.
In the late 1940s he worked as a correspondent for United Press International
. He spent much of this time covering the Communist in China and elsewhere is Southeast Asia. In January 1948 while covering the Chinese Civil War
he was walking in a field outside the west side of Peiping
with fellow journalist and farmer Erich Wilberg (from Bremen
), when gun fire was directed towards them. Keon hit the ground and was not injured just as Wilberg was killed.
On 1 and 2 February 1949, Keon and Spencer Moosa (the correspondent for the Associated Press
) reported on the Communist taking the city of Peiping. Soon after the Communist news agency started broadcasting that the people demand that the two journalist be expelled because they had 'libeled the people'. By the end of February all foreign correspondents, news-agencies, foreign newspapers, etc., were ordered to discontinue activities.
His first novel, The Tiger in Summer (published in 1953), was about the Chinese Communists during the transition period.
Keon was the English press relations officer for the Indonesian government in 1950. While working in this position he met Elizabeth E. Marcos while in Singapore
, also in 1950. They were married in Singapore on 21 February 1951. The couple then lived in the Philippines for 18 months.
He became the editor of the Rome Daily American
, which was the largest English newspaper in the post-war era in Italy, in 1953.
Keon worked for the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization and had a hand in setting up the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, Laguna. He was stationed in Washington D.C. and at the United Nations headquarters in New York City in 1963.
During his time in Rome, and later after they split up, his wife, Elizabeth, was press attache for the Philippine Embassy starting in 1961, and their son Michael Edward was born in Rome on 22 September 1954. Michael and Elizabeth separated for good, mainly over who controlled the family finances, in April 1962 (they had also separated in 1955-1956). In 1963, at the age of eight, Michael Edward made world-wide headlines in the international custody battle between his parents. An Australian court awarded custody of Michael Edward to his father because he was registered as an Australian citizen, he was raised in "Western ways", and his mother was known to have a fiery disposition. After the divorce Michael Edward was partially raised by his father's sister and her husband.
His novel The Durian Tree, about the struggle between the British colonialist and Communist insurgents after World War II in Malaysia, was the basis for the 1964 film The 7th Dawn
.
Keon's former wife, Elizabeth Marcos, was first the vice-governor and then governor of the Philippine province of Ilocos Norte
(1971-1983). She married for a second time, in Ilocos Norte in September 1979, to businessman Ludwig Petre Rocka. Rocka, born in Tulcea, Romania and became an Australian citizen, was a former engineer who became a prominent Melbourne and Manila businessman (International Development & Planning Corporation) in the construction business and also sold heavy construction equipment. The couple was implicated in removing gold from the Philippines, via the Nugan Hand Bank
with help from the CIA, after the collapse of her brother's government. Elizabeth died at age 65 of heart failure, in a Manila hospital, 14 December 1986. Her brother was forbidden to attend her funeral and burial at the family plot in Batac
.
Keon died in Rosebud, Victoria
at the age of 87.
Biography
Born James Michael Keon (aka J. M. Keon) in MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
. Michael married Elizabeth Marcos, a member of the Philippine political family, and sister of Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
. Their son is the Filipino politician Michael Marcos Keon
Michael Marcos Keon
Michael Edward Marcos Keon is a Filipino politician. Keon is the son of Australian journalist Michael Keon and Elizabeth Marcos-Keon, governor of Ilocos Norte from 1971 to 1983 and the nephew of former president Ferdinand Marcos....
.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Keon work for the Department of Information
Department of Information (Australia)
The Department of Information was an Australian Government department formed during World War II. The Department was established in September 1939 under the leadership of John Treloar, the director of the Australian War Memorial, who remained in this role until early 1941...
(D.O.I.), a branch of the Australian Government. In November 1945 he and fellow journalist Geoffrey Sawer broadcast a series of three short-wave radio reports criticizing the policies of the Great Britain, the United States, and the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
(who controlled much of the country) of their activities in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, and their hypocrisy (mainly the U.S.) in ignoring the plight of the country and the Indonesian people. The broadcasts caused a backlash in that one arm of the government was criticizing another, and these transmissions were themselves criticized, prompting a ministerial investigation into broadcast policy, and the resignation of the short-wave division head, William Macmahon Ball
William Macmahon Ball
William Macmahon Ball, AC was an Australian academic and diplomat. Educated at Caulfield Grammar School and the University of Melbourne, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree, Ball studied both psychology and political science as a research fellow at Melbourne and the London School of...
.
In the late 1940s he worked as a correspondent for United Press International
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
. He spent much of this time covering the Communist in China and elsewhere is Southeast Asia. In January 1948 while covering the Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
he was walking in a field outside the west side of Peiping
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
with fellow journalist and farmer Erich Wilberg (from Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
), when gun fire was directed towards them. Keon hit the ground and was not injured just as Wilberg was killed.
On 1 and 2 February 1949, Keon and Spencer Moosa (the correspondent for the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
) reported on the Communist taking the city of Peiping. Soon after the Communist news agency started broadcasting that the people demand that the two journalist be expelled because they had 'libeled the people'. By the end of February all foreign correspondents, news-agencies, foreign newspapers, etc., were ordered to discontinue activities.
His first novel, The Tiger in Summer (published in 1953), was about the Chinese Communists during the transition period.
Keon was the English press relations officer for the Indonesian government in 1950. While working in this position he met Elizabeth E. Marcos while in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, also in 1950. They were married in Singapore on 21 February 1951. The couple then lived in the Philippines for 18 months.
He became the editor of the Rome Daily American
Rome Daily American
Rome Daily American was an English language daily newspaper published in Rome, Italy which operated from 1946 to 1986.-History:It was started by three GIs taking advantage of the discontinuation of the publication in Europe of Stars and Stripes, the American Military newspaper which had been...
, which was the largest English newspaper in the post-war era in Italy, in 1953.
Keon worked for the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization and had a hand in setting up the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, Laguna. He was stationed in Washington D.C. and at the United Nations headquarters in New York City in 1963.
During his time in Rome, and later after they split up, his wife, Elizabeth, was press attache for the Philippine Embassy starting in 1961, and their son Michael Edward was born in Rome on 22 September 1954. Michael and Elizabeth separated for good, mainly over who controlled the family finances, in April 1962 (they had also separated in 1955-1956). In 1963, at the age of eight, Michael Edward made world-wide headlines in the international custody battle between his parents. An Australian court awarded custody of Michael Edward to his father because he was registered as an Australian citizen, he was raised in "Western ways", and his mother was known to have a fiery disposition. After the divorce Michael Edward was partially raised by his father's sister and her husband.
His novel The Durian Tree, about the struggle between the British colonialist and Communist insurgents after World War II in Malaysia, was the basis for the 1964 film The 7th Dawn
The 7th Dawn
The 7th Dawn is a 1964 drama film starring William Holden, Capucine and Tetsuro Tamba. The film was based on the novel The Durian Tree by Michael Keon.-Plot:...
.
Keon's former wife, Elizabeth Marcos, was first the vice-governor and then governor of the Philippine province of Ilocos Norte
Ilocos Norte
Ilocos Norte is a province of the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region in Luzon. Its capital is Laoag City and is located at the northwest corner of Luzon Island, bordering Cagayan and Apayao to the east, and Abra and Ilocos Sur to the south...
(1971-1983). She married for a second time, in Ilocos Norte in September 1979, to businessman Ludwig Petre Rocka. Rocka, born in Tulcea, Romania and became an Australian citizen, was a former engineer who became a prominent Melbourne and Manila businessman (International Development & Planning Corporation) in the construction business and also sold heavy construction equipment. The couple was implicated in removing gold from the Philippines, via the Nugan Hand Bank
Nugan Hand Bank
Nugan Hand Bank was an Australian merchant bank thatcollapsed in 1980 in sensational circumstances amidst rumours of involvement by the Central Intelligence Agency and organized crime.-Founding:...
with help from the CIA, after the collapse of her brother's government. Elizabeth died at age 65 of heart failure, in a Manila hospital, 14 December 1986. Her brother was forbidden to attend her funeral and burial at the family plot in Batac
Batac
Batac is a component city in the province of Ilocos Norte, Philippines. The town is located in the northwest corner of the island of Luzon, about 11.2 km from the eastern shores of the South China Sea...
.
Keon died in Rosebud, Victoria
Rosebud, Victoria
Rosebud is a sea side town on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Australia located approximately 75 km southeast of the Melbourne City Centre. It is wedged between the lower slopes of Arthurs Seat, the shores of Port Phillip Bay and the plains of Boneo. Its Local Government Area is the...
at the age of 87.
Works
- Fiction (fact/historical based):
- 1953: The Tiger in Summer - (New York: Harper & Brothers)
- 1960: The Durian Tree - (New York: Simon & Schuster; OCLC Number: 1448119)
- Non-fiction:
- 1977: Koren Phoenix: A Nation From the Ashes - (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall International)
- 1993: Joy Hester: An Unsettling World - (North Caulfield, Victoria: Malakoff Fine Art Press)
- 1996: Glad Morning Again - (Watsons Bay, NSW: Imprint; autobiography)