ANZAC
day is a time when we remember the original ANZACS, who on April 25
1915, by their sacrifice, commitment, endurance, courage and
mateship, set standards that were to inspire their countrymen for
generations to come.
It
is a time we remember those that came after them, men and women who
served their nation, inspired by that spirit of ANZAC some paying the
ultimate price, sacrificing their lives in the wars, conflicts,
peacekeeping operations, disaster relief and humanitarian assistance
missions that have followed over the intervening 99 years.
It
is also a time for us to reflect on the continued service of the men
and women who have chosen a life of great courage, discipline and
self-sacrifice to serve in the Defence Force of our nation,
protecting the democracy and freedoms we enjoy but which have been
paid for so dearly.
So
we meet here each year in the half light of dawn, the traditional
time, when soldiers in defensive positions were woken in the dark
alert to the imminent danger of attack, or moved into position by air
land or sea in preparation for an attack, and we honour the heroism,
tenacity and resilience of that original group of young men who went
ashore at Gallipoli in the pre dawn light 99 years ago today, many of
whom would never see their homelands and loved ones again. Men who
set the standard, for all the service men and women who were to
follow them.
Some
16000 Australian and New Zealand soldiers surged ashore at the foot
of the rugged cliffs of the Dardanelles peninsular on the 25 April
1915.
By
the end of that first day, more than 20,000 Australians and New
Zealanders had been put ashore, mainly in a little bay that would
become known as Anzac Cove.
More
than 2000 Australians were killed that day and it has been estimated
the opposing Turkish units suffered around the same number of
casualties.
The
original intention of the landing had been to head swiftly across the
Gallipoli Peninsula and capture the Straits of the Dardanelles.
However, strong Turkish counter-attacks made this impossible and the
Anzacs were forced to dig themselves in along a ridge-line half a
kilometre from the shore. This became known as the ‘ANZAC’
position until the evacuation of December 1915.
Historians
tell us that it was an ill-conceived campaign, that the planners
underestimated the character and military prowess of the Turkish
soldiers, who of course were defending their homeland, not to mention
the tactical advantage they held.
By
the end of the eight-month campaign, 8709 Australians and 2721 New
Zealanders had died, with thousands more wounded. From an Australian
population of just 3.2 Million and a New Zealand population of around
1 Million, these casualties had a significant effect on the cities
and towns of our two nations. This can be evidenced by the many
memorials and cenotaphs, like this one, all across our two nations
where people gather today to commemorate, not to glorify war but to
honour the ANZACs courage, endurance, resilience and mateship…..
Whilst
Gallipoli was a tactical defeat the Australian and New Zealander’s
withdrawal was a sort of tactical victory, they managed to withdraw
before the Turkish defenders knew what was happening.
However
the deeds and spirit of the ANZACS had a far greater effect than that
which they achieved on the battlefield. An effect that has echoed
across time.
You
see they were serving overseas in the name of their fledgling nations
for the first time. The spirit and legends they established, gave
voice to feelings of national pride in both young nations and news of
their suffering, when it reached the homes, in cities and towns, of
anxiously awaiting families, brought people together in ways they had
not known before.
Gallipoli
gave us pride, not in war, but in the knowledge that Australians and
New Zealanders, when put to the test, would not fail.
The
spirit and tradition forged by the original ANZACS sustained our
forces in the many later battles of the First World War, as well as
those of the Second World War, Korea, Vietnam, Malaya, Borneo,
Vietnam, The Gulf Wars, Afghanistan and in many ways continues to
sustain us now.
That
spirit of ANZAC has inspired our service men and women when involved
in international peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance missions,
border security, and disaster relief operations and continues to do
so today, as we see our personnel currently serving both in Australia
and overseas. More than 3,300 soldiers, sailors, airmen and women are
currently deployed on operations, continuing in the ANZAC spirit,
whilst serving Australia’s national interests and at home and in
many countries around the world.
Let
us not forget today’s veterans, returning from duty in places like
Afghanistan, Iraq, Solomon Islands and Timor Leste.
No
Australian is left untouched when a member of our Defence Force is
killed in action, or training. It is difficult to comprehend the
grief associated with such a loss of a parent, partner, child or a
sibling, so let us also ensure we remember the families, loved ones
and friends left behind.
So today on the 99th anniversary of the landing at ANZAC Cove, we pause
to acknowledge all current and former members of our Defence Forces
and the Defence Forces of all the Nations that are represented in our
great multicultural society.
I
would like to close with an excerpt from a book by John Hepworth,
entitled the long green shore, it is about Australian soldiers in
Papua New Guinea,
‘they
pinned no medals on him, they made no speeches, we need no medals or
speeches, we know him and remember. He was a good ordinary
bloke-that’s the point-that’s an important thing, he was an
ordinary bloke like you and me.’
So
let us remember all the young Men and Women, the ordinary blokes, who
sacrificed the pleasure of growing old with their families, the joys
of seeing their children grow up, and the pleasure of spending time
with their friends so that we could enjoy the freedoms they won for
us, paid for so dearly, and experience the pleasure of the dawn
chorus of these birds and listening to the voices of the ones we
love.
Lest
we forget.
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