Far Eastern Liaison Office
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The Far Eastern Liaison Office (FELO) was a Second World War Propaganda and Field Intelligence unit set up under the orders of the Allied Land Commander, General Sir Thomas Blamey, on 19 June 1942. FELO became one of four sections of the Allied Intelligence Bureau (AIB) which was established on 6 July 1942 to control and co-ordinate the activities of various intelligence organisations that had been set up after the outbreak of war with Japan.
Far Eastern Liaison Office was a propaganda organisation and was given a non-descriptive cover name to protect its real intelligence purpose. Its objectives were:
- 1. To lower the morale of the enemy forces and so impair their fighting efficiency.
- 2. To mislead the enemy regarding our military intentions.
- 3. To influence subject populations in enemy-occupied territories to impair the enemy's war effort and to assist Allied Forces.
Methods
While some activity was common to both the Services Reconnaissance Department and FELO the general line of demarcation was that SRD was responsible for sabotage and physical operations while FELO was responsible for propaganda and misdirection.
FELO's methods, utilised in the S.W.P.A, were:
- Leaflets. Directed against enemy troops or to the inhabitants of enemy-occupied territories.
- Front Line Broadcast Units. Small detachments equipped with a radio, gramophone and amplifier, forward deployed to project specially selected talks and music into nearby enemy held areas to 'keep his mind occupied and prevent him from obtaining proper periods of relaxation.'
- Mobile Propaganda Units. These units worked with advanced forces with the objective of obtaining maximum native co-operation with Allied Troops.
- Agents. Agents worked in enemy-occupied territory, either under control of a European officer or independently.
- Misdirection. Use of rumours, leaflets, press and radio for the purpose of misleading the enemy as to military intentions.
- Radio. Special broadcasts to inhabitants of occupied countries which were picked up and broadcast by field parties.
- The collection of information and intelligence. Specifically to produce analysis that would be of use for psychological warfare purposes.