Andrew Hastie (Canning, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House

(1) notes that:

(a) from 21 to 28 of October the Minister for Veterans' Affairs undertook a veterans mission to Korea; and

(b) eight veterans joined the Minister to tour battlefields and attend commemorations, including Mr Gordon Hughes DSM, Mr Graham Connor, Mr Les Hall, Mr Jack Lang, Mr John Murphy, Lieutenant Commander Les Powell RAN (Retd.), Colonel Peter Scott DSO (Retd.), and Mr Ray Seaver;

(2) acknowledges that:

(a) this year marks the 65th anniversaries of the Battle of Maryang San and the Battle of Kapyong;

(b) the Battle of Maryang San took place on 3 October when the 3rd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment, as part of the 28th British Commonwealth Infantry Brigade, took part in Operation Commando, which included the capture of Hill 317, where 20 Australians were killed and 89 wounded—noted as the most significant Australian action of the Korean War;

(c) in the Battle of Kapyong on 22 to 25 April 1951, the 27th British Commonwealth Infantry Brigade, including the 3rd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment, was instrumental in stalling the Chinese advance on Seoul, with 32 Australians being killed, 59 wounded and 3 taken prisoner;

(d) more than 17,000 Australians served in the Korean War and the post armistice period, with more than 1,200 wounded; and

(e) the names of 356 Australians killed in Korea are listed on the Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour; and

(3) notes:

(a) that although it has been called the 'forgotten war' in Australia, Korea and its people are still grateful for the significant contribution the Australian forces made in the defence of a free Republic of Korea; and

(b) the service and sacrifice of those who fought in the Korean War.

Australia has a long and rich military history. Many Australians are familiar with the Boer War, World War I, World War II, Vietnam and more recently the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Australians have great pride in those who have served to defend our country, our values and our interests abroad, and we honour the memory of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice every year on Anzac Day. But, sadly, our remembrance is often unequal and, while some of our wars are seared into the minds and imaginations of Australians, some are not—I think of the movie Gallipoli which has done so much to popularise World War I in the Australian memory. Who can forget young Archie forging his documents and gluing on a fake moustache so he could enlist? And who can forget that final scene of Archie sprinting towards a young death as fast as a leopard on that battlefield?

More recently, a favourite film amongst diggers these days is The Odd Angry Shot, which captures the bluff irreverence of the Aussie diggers in Vietnam. Who can forget the mateship at the heart of that film? Sadly, we have no such popular memory of the Korean War and no movies that have really captured the spirit of that conflict. We have a beautiful memorial on the western side of Anzac Parade but, if you ask most Australians, they are not familiar with the war. It is too often called the forgotten war.

The Korean War saw the service of 17,000 Australians, with 1,200 wounded and 356 who lost their lives. We have a duty to better understand the experience of these men and women who served in one of the 20th century's greatest conflicts. Our involvement in that war, so soon after the Second World War, was largely due to our burgeoning alliance with the United States. It was that growing relationship which led the Minister for External Affairs in the Menzies government, Percy Spender, to push for Australian involvement in the Korean War as he believed that a strong show of support for the US would help formalise an alliance with the United States. That alliance, of course, found its fullest expression in the ANZUS Treaty, which was signed in September 1951. That treaty, for more than 65 years, has established the contours of our closest security relationship with one of the world's oldest democracies. And it is still the United States with its vast navy that underwrites world security and guarantees Australia's lines of trade and communication.

The Korean War was significant in several respects: firstly, it halted the advance of communism at the 38th parallel, protecting many South Koreans from the brutality of communism; and, secondly, it formalised our security relationship with the United States. It has echoes today even in this parliament. The member for Dunkley made mention of this in his maiden speech only a few months ago:

Without our Korean War veterans, my wife, Grace, and daughter, Yasmin, would not be here. Grace was from South Korea, migrating to Australia with her family at three. Her dad's family only just made it across from the North Korean side, and they have not seen their relatives in North Korea since. The communists killed her mum's grandparents by throwing them alive into a well.

Our Korean War veterans helped many people in ways that are unseen and unheard. The member for Dunkley's testimony reminds us that Australian acts of sacrifice on far-flung battlefields—although forgotten and sometimes unreported—can make a huge difference in the lives of people.

I am therefore pleased to note the recent Korean War veterans' mission to Korea. Last month the Minister for Veterans' Affairs, Dan Tehan, accompanied eight servicemen of the Korean War to that country: Mr Gordon Hughes DSM, Mr Graham Connor, Mr Les Hall, Mr Jack Lang, Mr John Murphy, Lieutenant Commander Les Powell RAN (Ret'd), Colonel Peter Scott DSO (Ret'd) and Mr Ray Seaver. Together they toured battlefields, cemeteries and memorials and participated in commemorative services. One of those men, Mr Jack Lang, is a constituent of my electorate. He lives in the small town of Coolup, central to Canning and a place well known for its green pastures, friendly general store—the only store—and horses. Today I want to share with you some of Jack's experience of the Korean conflict.

Jack was born in Harvey WA in 1931 and left school before he turned 14. Within a few years he had a good job at the Bullfinch mine. One day he and his mates were enjoying a beer at the pub when an Army recruiter pulled up outside. It seemed like a pretty good idea at the time, so Jack signed up. Being 17 he was underage, so he gave the recruiter his aunt's name, Olsen, as his own.

Jack hoped to be a bricklayer upon enlistment but, following basic training, found himself listed as 'general duties'. This meant, as he put it, 'They gave us a bloody tin hat, a pair of boots and a rifle and said, "Righto, you're off to Japan!"' A rifleman of 67th Battalion C Company 9th Platoon, Jack spent his first year of service as part of the British Commonwealth Occupation Force in Japan. The 67th Battalion was planning to return to Australia until the United Nations called for the defence of South Korea from communist invasion. As part of the BCOF Jack was among the first Australians on Korean soil in September 1950.

The BCOF landed in Pusan on the southern tip of Korea and pushed north with initial success. At the Battle of Kujin, Jack's battalion—by this stage renamed 3rd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, 'Old faithful', with the motto 'duty first'—had to scale a blown-up bridge on makeshift ladders. Jack remembers this engagement was particularly bad with 'bullets flying everywhere and ricocheting of the bridge. I don't know how we got up there; but we had to keep going because we were exposed and all bottled up'. His good mate Bluey Wilkinson died in that action. Bluey was among the war's first Australian casualties.

The physical conditions of Korea were formidable. Jack remembers terrible freezing cold and rough terrain, the 'mountains upon mountains' in which they fought. Being ill-equipped for such conditions, Jack recalls how the Australians would steal heavy winter gear from the Americans, who eventually gave up and just started giving it to them. Under such conditions, the UN forces pushed North Korea to the brink of defeat. It was only the intervention of over half a million Chinese troops that forced the UN withdrawal. The 3rd Battalion, along with other British units, took part in extensive rearguard actions while the UN forces made their retreat. Jack never saw the 3rd Battalion's most famous battles at Kapyong and Maryang San. Kapyong, of course, is significant because the 3RAR halted a Chinese division in a desperate defensive battle to protect the approaches to the capital of Seoul. 3RAR were honoured for their valour over the course of several days with the US Presidential Citation.

Jack missed Kapyong because, in January 1951, he took cover behind a tank that exploded. This caused permanent damage to his hearing and after several months in hospital he was ruled unfit for the infantry. Jack was discharged and back in Australia by 1952. He returned to find most people had no idea of the war he had just come from. Old friends would ask where he had been, where Korea was and what he had been doing there. It was easy to wonder what it had all been for.

When asked what future generations should to learn from the Korean War, Jack said, 'People must understand that if you are going to have peace you have got to pay a hell of a price for it.' It reminds me of the RSL's motto fixed to many RSLs around this country: 'Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.' I am reminded of Ernest Hemingway, who I quoted in my maiden speech:

I have seen much war in my lifetime and I hate it profoundly. But there are worse things than war, and all of them come with defeat.

Jack describes travelling to Korea last month as part of the delegation as an honour—a good reminder that what he did over there was worth it. He says it felt good to be thanked by ordinary South Koreans who understand it was the service of men like him that protected them from the yoke of communism. To use his words, 'They were really thankful. It makes it worth it, that you have got someone who appreciates what you have done. It means a lot that the boys did not die for nothing.'

To Jack Lang and all who served in the Korean War, we say: thank you. We will remember your sacrifice for our nation, for its values, and for the people of Korea. And it is upon us to tell your story and to keep that story alive.

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