Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

It is a great privilege to be able to speak on this motion. On 25 April 2015, all across my electorate of Sturt, people gathered at dawn services and other commemorative events to pay their respects. They came together to mark the centenary of an event that was key in the development of Australia as a nation. One hundred years ago, on the rocky shore of Gallipoli, this young nation stood side by side with its allies. We stood up and were counted with our old friends New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Of course, we must not forget that the campaign at Gallipoli was a tragedy and a failure. We were unable to dislodge the Turkish defenders and so were eventually forced to withdraw. Nearly 9,000 Australians were killed along with 3,000 New Zealanders and 35,000 British.

To many it seems odd that Australia chooses to mark a great defeat in such a way—parades, services and ceremonies for something many countries would rather not acknowledge—but, defeat or not, Anzac Day provides us with the opportunity to remember the sacrifice made by so many during that campaign 100 years ago and the sacrifice of the families, lovers, partners and parents waiting at home. Most importantly, we remember that the Gallipoli campaign was the first time that Australia, a young nation, came together as a nation and stood up with our allies. We had only been founded at Federation 15 years before and were going into battle alongside one of the world's oldest democracies. We were establishing a reputation that our soldiers have fought hard to keep up from that day to now—a reputation for excellence on the battlefield, having an irreverent attitude to authority, fighting for our mates rather than for elusive ideals and being a small army that punches above its weight. This is the same reputation that our forces have aspired to from that day in 1915 through to the terrible scenes of the Western Front, through the Second World War, Korea, Borneo, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, along with countless smaller commitments in between. And so Anzac Day has now become a wider occasion of remembrance. We pause to acknowledge all the sons and daughters of Anzac who have followed in the stead of those original warriors in 1915 and those that have done so much and tried so hard to maintain the Anzac legacy.

I was proud to take my place at the Kensington Park RSL ceremony on this year's Anzac Day. Kensington Park is in the centre of my electorate and the RSL is a hub for ex-service men and women of all generations, as well as the wider community. I, like many Australians, have a close family link to Gallipoli and was proud to be able to acknowledge those links on Anzac Day. My great-uncle Patrick was killed with the 10th Australian Infantry Battalion on the day of the landings itself. He was 19. Patrick's older brother, Octavius, who went into battle alongside him, survived the Gallipoli campaign but ultimately lost his life later in France in March 1917, aged 26. And, finally, my father, Remington, served in the British Commonwealth Occupation Force in Japan after World War II and then with the 3rd Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment as a medical officer in Korea.

I was heartened to see how many Sturt locals came out to attend the service and to hear of the strong crowds at other services in Sturt. Every year the numbers seem to keep on increasing as a new generation of Australians take the time to pay their respects. I am particularly pleased that a number of organisations in my electorate were able to benefit from the government's Anzac Centenary Local Grants Program to ensure we were able to properly mark this event.

I congratulate all the organisations, made up almost exclusively of volunteers, who have worked so hard to plan, apply for and now put these grants to work for the good of the community. Some examples include: Knightsbridge Baptist Church, which will erect a plaque to commemorate the soldiers of the First World War; Maltese RSL subbranch, which will also install a plaque as well as publish a book Malta and the ANZACs: the Nurses of the Mediterranean, highlighting the valuable contribution made here; Kensington Park RSL subbranch, which will refurbish and replace their memorial grove ensuring this special place appropriately commemorates the sacrifices made so many years before; St Martin's Anglican Church, which has an ambitious plan for the construction of a memorial pathway and garden to recognise those in the local community who served in the First World War; Campbelltown City Council, which will upgrade the First World War Memorial at the intersection of Lower North East Road and Gorge Road, making sure that it stands proud for generations to come; St Morris RSL subbranch, which will erect a new Anzac memorial; the St George's Church historical group, which issued a special commemorative booklet and conducted the special service on the Sunday after Anzac Day that I was privileged enough to attend; and, finally, Payneham RSL subbranch, which will attach a sword to the cross of sacrifice within their garden of remembrance. These grants, along with the countless services and ceremonies conducted by RSLs, churches, schools and community groups, stand testament to the commitment of the people of my electorate of Sturt to properly recognise the sacrifices made by generations past.

While we rightly remember those who lost their lives and fought at Gallipoli, it is the case that our human links to the men and women of that time are slowly fading. No Australian veterans of the conflict remain alive. Our duty now is to those veterans of later wars, who are still alive. Some are bearing the physical injuries and scars of their service. Some are bearing the more insidious, because they are invisible, mental scars. Unable to forget, unable to let go, they deserve and need our help. To those who have served and are struggling I say: 'Please, ask for help. It is available and there for you, and there is no shame in seeking it.' To all of us I say this: 'They fought on our behalf, and now we must do what we can to help.'

I have long been proud to represent the electorate of Sturt but never more than on this occasion. Watching a community come together to pay their respects to those brave Australians of 100 years ago was a fantastic thing. To speak on their behalf on this motion today is, indeed, a great privilege, and I commend this motion to the House.

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