Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As a war heroine, Nancy Wake, who passed away in London on 7 August 2011, aged 98 years, was a pioneering feminist who spoke loudly with words and backed them up with actions—bold, brave, remarkable actions. She once said:

I hate wars and violence, but if they come I don't see why we women should just wave our men a proud goodbye and then knit them balaclavas.

It was a philosophy she most definitely lived by.

At the outbreak of World War II in 1939, Wellington-New Zealand-born Ms Wake was a newlywed living in France and working as a journalist. However, instead of thinking that she could most help by staying at home, she felt she could do most by joining the fight. She hid downed allied servicemen at her home and led them over the Pyrenees to shelter in Spain and, throughout the war, she helped save and shelter many more men and women. Exact figures are hard to establish, but she was reported to have helped save many hundreds of lives.

As the war progressed, Ms Wake helped organise thousands of French Resistance fighters by helping train 7,000 partisans in preparation for the Normandy invasion. She also distributed weapons and met allied arms drops.

As her involvement in the war deepened, Ms Wake was trained by the British to kill with her bare hands, parachute into enemy-held territory and work a machine gun—what a fighter; what a woman. By joining the fight, she made such a contribution to the allied effort that she topped the Gestapo's most wanted list. She had a five million franc price on her head.

Her life was in constant danger. The resistance network was betrayed in 1943. Ms Wake fled Marseille. Her husband, Henri Fiocca, remained behind where he was later captured, tortured and executed by the Gestapo.

Ms Wake always put herself in the midst of the action. She was dauntless. When a German counterattack against the Resistance movement disrupted lines of communication, she covered 200 kilometres by bike over hostile ground to receive crucial messages. To her, this was not a heroine's mission; this was a necessity and she took to the responsibility because a woman was deemed to have more chance.

After the war, she received numerous international honours, including the George Medal, the Croix de Guerre, the Medaille de la Resistance, the Chevalier de Legion d'Honneur and the US Medal of Freedom and became a Companion of the Order of Australia.

She chomped on cigars, drank with the best of them and lived in horrendous conditions; however, she travelled nowhere without her Chanel lipstick, face cream and a favourite red satin cushion.

She was once described by one of her colleagues as 'the most feminine woman I know until the fighting starts—then she is like five men.' Another, Vera Atkins, who also worked in the British Special Operations Executive said Wake was 'a real Australian bombshell, tremendous vitality, flashing eyes; everything she did, she did well.'

Training records report that Wake was a very good and fast shot and had excellent field craft. It was noted that she put the men to shame by her cheerful spirit and strength of character.

In 1949, Nancy returned to Australia and stood as a Liberal Party candidate in the Sydney seat of Barton. What a tremendous contribution she would have made to this place, but unfortunately it was not to be. Despite a strong swing in her favour, Nancy did not win the seat, and so she returned to Britain in 1958 when she was appointed in the Women's Royal Air Force as an officer in the British Air Ministry.

Nancy Wake was one of the bravest Australians who has ever lived. She was known by those in the Gestapo as the 'White Mouse' for the way she deftly avoided their traps. To Australians and New Zealanders she is known as a true heroine. She lived the Anzac spirit. Vale Nancy Grace Augusta Wake. Lest we forget.

Robert Oakeshott (Lyne, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank everyone for their contributions to the debate on the condolence motion concerning the passing of Nancy Wake. I wish to add some views from the perspective of the mid-North Coast and convey the thoughts of many people who knew Nancy Wake well during the 14 years that she lived in Port Macquarie, when she was in her early 80s through to her early 90s, before she moved to France and London to live her final days.

Many people have spoken about Nancy Wake recently and books have been written about her by the likes of Peter FitzSimons. Many people have expressed enormous respect and regard for her efforts throughout World War II on behalf of the French Resistance. In France, her name is held in as high regard as that of Cadel Evans. Many within Australia probably do not recognise the absolute regard with which Nancy is held in both France and England. She is a true hero in a time when the term 'hero' is thrown around all too easily. She is and was the real deal.

I had the pleasure of knowing Nancy personally throughout her 80s and early 90s. She lived in a third-storey unit on William Street in Port Macquarie, very close to the town centre. She lived independently and would shop on her own. She negotiated the stairs and got herself downtown with very little assistance for as long as possible. I heard the term 'feisty' used to describe her on many occasions and I can confirm that that was absolutely true. She would show respect to and expect it from all comers, regardless of their authority, position or, in military terms, rank. For those who knew her well it was good fun at times to watch her pull up people who did not observe the common courtesies of life. She would certainly not let those moments pass but would remind people that those common courtesies matter, regardless of who you are.

As previous speakers have mentioned, she was a woman with a great interest in all things military and all things political. Despite not being successful in her bid for election as an MP, as we see so often in Australian life, she held some very strong views and found many ways to very effectively express those views. On the subject of immigration, she was strong in her view that Australia needs to make sure it supports and protects Australians first. It might not be a view that is widely regarded amongst politicians today as we deal with the very difficult issue of immigration, but Nancy was certainly very eager to say that we should not leave anyone behind when it comes to skills and education. She felt we should do everything we can to support and enhance the lives of Australians first.

There are many locals in Port Macquarie who will miss Nancy Wake. Many stayed in touch with her when she went to what she considered her spiritual homeland, in France, for her final days. I know there are a lot of people grieving as they recall some very fond memories of a great woman.

On behalf of the whole mid-North Coast community, I say a very big thankyou to Nancy Wake. She is a true hero, as I said before. I hope she is not someone who comes to be seen as being of a bygone era that we will never see again. I hope that we celebrate her passing and that there are lessons learnt about things such as common courtesies and being fearless in your defence of and bearing witness to the things that matter. Her spirit is one to behold. Whilst many place great emphasis on her efforts as the White Mouse in the French Resistance, at a deeper level what I hope we really celebrate are the spirit of Nancy Wake and the values that she carried. She talked quite proudly about how she loved killing Germans, and while on the surface it might have seemed hate-filled what in fact was at the heart of it was love. Her true love of her fellow man was that if she saw injustice she was willing to go into battle and fight on their behalf against the injustice. I hope that is the celebration of her life and the lesson learnt for future Australians.

We mark the passing of Nancy Wake. Hopefully, she will be regularly remembered both within military circles and in broader Australian life. Like others, I say 'Vale' to Nancy Wake. Your time on earth was well spent. It was certainly a crowded hour. Her spirit is one that I hope all of us try and live up to. Well done on a life well lived.

Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the condolence motion for Nancy Wake and to pass on my sympathy and support to her family and friends at this time. I, along with many others, was saddened to hear of her passing on 7 August 2011 at the age of 98. Nancy grew up in Sydney on a quarter-acre block during the Depression. She became a nurse and later a journalist. As a war correspondent she covered Hitler's rallies in Berlin and witnessed firsthand the Nazi violence. She joined the French Resistance and worked to help British airmen shot down over France to escape back to Britain. Her ability to evade capture lead to her being known as the 'white mouse' by the Gestapo.

By all accounts, Nancy Wake was a truly remarkable and courageous woman. She was clearly a woman with confidence in her own ability and who was prepared to fight for what she believed in. She was on record as saying:

I don't see why we women should just wave our men a proud goodbye and then knit them balaclavas.

Her story was told at the Currumbin RSL on Monday of this week by its President, Mr Ron Workman OAM, when a service was held to mark the 66th year since the end of World War II. Ron Workman and the Currumbin RSL are well known throughout Australia as it is this club, and Mr Workman in his capacity as president, which officiates at the very special Anzac Day dawn service that is held at Elephant Rock on Currumbin Beach and broadcast live across Australia. Approximately 10,000 people attended the service this year alone.

I consider it an honour to have been able to attend the service and luncheon on Monday to mark the end of World War II. It gave me the opportunity to meet many of our veterans who have served in the Korean and Vietnam wars. I had the privilege to speak with Warrant Officer Keith Payne VC, OAM, who is a most humble man who performed an incredible act of gallantry during the Vietnam War on the night of 24 May 1969 when he instigated a daring rescue of more than 40 men, many of them wounded, and led them back to the battalion base. In his own words, he got those soldiers out because:

It was my responsibility to get as many soldiers out of that battlefield area as possible, right? And that's what a commander's all about. I just did it because it was my responsibility. Somebody had to do something.

Looking around the room at the Currumbin RSL and seeing so many veterans gathered there I felt honoured to be with them. They have all done remarkable things for our country and I thank them all.

As the daughter, grand-daughter and great grand-daughter of World War I and World War II veterans I am tremendously proud of the legacy left by Nancy Wake and our veterans. Lest we forget.

Mike Kelly (Eden-Monaro, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I commend the previous speakers for their comments in relation to this wonderful Australian, Nancy Wake. It is one of those bittersweet moments in this place, when we obviously feel sad about the passing of a great Australian but also have the chance and a rare privilege to comment on a great life such as this and to celebrate that life. For me personally in these situations, I always attempt to draw lessons from the lives of these great Australians. There is no other person in our lexicon, in our galaxy of great Australians, than Nancy Wake to bring home so many relevant lessons to this country and so many lessons that are actually relevant right now. I will talk a bit more about that in a second. What an Australian, what a woman, this person was. It is also symbolic of our military tradition and heritage that she was actually born in New Zealand; she is the embodiment of that Anzac tradition itself. It is quite an interesting fact of her early upbringing.

I think we need to take one step back about what led her to perform the amazing feats that she did to demonstrate the courage to take on the forces of Nazism in Europe. It really all stemmed from her experience as a journalist in the 1930s. She was working in Paris at that time for Hearst Newspapers as a European correspondent. In that role she travelled to Vienna and Germany and had firsthand experience of observing the brutality of the Nazi regime, in particular towards the Jewish population of Germany. She witnessed the beatings, the humiliations and the degradations of the Jewish community. She saw the boycotts of Jewish businesses. She saw the daubing on the windows of those businesses. She saw the rabid crowds who gathered outside those businesses and broke their windows and intimidated decent citizens going about their normal business. How important it is to reflect on that. That led her of course to the great motivation to take on this evil regime.

Really, she is a timely reminder of the great generation who stood up to be counted, to take on those challenges and to pay sacrifices and live with those sacrifices. In her own case, that was a very personal sacrifice because, as we have heard, her own husband, Henri Flocci, was captured, tortured and executed by the Gestapo. She did suffer that personal loss immediately in that context. We are obviously these days called upon to shoulder those sorts of sacrifices in our ongoing efforts in Afghanistan, for example, against a no less evil opponent.

Her record was a tremendous one as a soldier, effectively. The training that she would have gone through alone to be an SUE operator was incredibly hazardous. There were no OHMS rules going through that training. Just surviving that training was a real credit to her. It involved jumping out of perfectly serviceable aircraft, which in itself is often declared by some people to be an act of insanity but certainly requires great courage and great skill. In her training she was, as we heard the member for Riverina state, categorised and reported on as being a very good and fast shot and possessing excellent field craft. As was also said, she put a lot of men to shame by her spirit and strength of character. I really commend the Leader of the Opposition yesterday for drawing attention to the fact that this was a woman, in the context of debates we have had recently about women in combat. If there is any better example we could cite than Nancy Wake over some of the more sillier aspects of that argument, then this is a perfect case study. I commend the Leader of the Opposition for drawing that particular lesson out of the life of Nancy Wake.

It was not just that she was good in training. She put that training into effect. One of the things that she had to do of course was kill, in the service of this great cause of defeating fascism in Europe. She killed an SS sentry with her bare hands to prevent him raising the alarm. She conducted many operations where she was responsible for directing actual contact, directing actual combat activity, directing covering fire with exceptional coolness and facilitating the operations of the maquis that she was involved with. Many times she was under fire and many times she was called upon to exercise her military skills in every possible way that you can.

She was a real character. Obviously she had a lot of strong opinions, not all of which some of us would agree with, but she certainly earned the right to exercise and voice those opinions if anybody did. Once when she was parachuted into France she was discovered by Captain Tardivat hanging in a tree. Captain Tardivat, being the gallant Frenchman, said to her, 'I hope that all the trees in France bear such beautiful fruit this year,' to which Nancy replied, 'Don't give me that French shit'—a typical Australian response. But she did love France and the French people; it was not reflective of that but more of her particular Australian spirit. Certainly she was also heard to make some comments about our nation's recognition of her—which was very tardy, we have to admit. She refused offers of decorations from Australia that came later by saying, 'The last time there was a suggestion of that I told the government they could stick their medals where the monkey stuck his nuts.' She was a character and in the finest tradition of this country.

I would like to come back again before I finish to talk about the lessons she brings home to me today and why they are so relevant today. She stood up in the face of the brutality that was being exhibited towards the Jewish population of Germany, the boycotts of their businesses et cetera. In this country today we are facing similar actions in this insidious—let me call it what it is—anti-Semitic boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign being run by certain sections of our community and supported by certain sections of certain political parties. This is the most disgusting, despicable campaign I think I have witnessed in recent times. It has been brought to the height of ridiculousness by the campaign against Max Brenner's chocolate shop in Melbourne, and more protests along the same lines are planned for Brisbane on 27 August and Melbourne on 9 September. I commend all of those who have united in their voice to condemn these boycotts.

Lest anyone be in any doubt about what these people are on about: campaigns like 'Let Palestine be free from the Jordan to the sea' are not on about the two-state solution; they are on about eliminating the state of Israel, another six million Jews on whose behalf we need to exercise due diligence and campaign for their survival against this insidious campaign. What are we going to see next? Will these people be daubing windows and breaking windows again? Is that what we are going to see next? There were 15 people arrested at that boycott of Max Brenner's shop—a peaceful, decent citizen of this country, doing his business honestly. I vigorously condemn not only the engagement in these activities but also the hypocrisy of these people. Where have these people been in relation to what is going on in Syria? Hundreds of people are being massacred, tortured and brutalised daily. What about Libya? What about Egypt? What about Tunisia? What about Somalia, Iran—where those people cry out for support and recognition—or North Korea, with massive daily violations of human rights? Where are these people? Where is their BDS campaign in relation to these issues? When we are talking about Israel, we are talking about the only democracy in the Middle East with a strong civil society, with separation of powers, with a Supreme Court that regularly rules in equity and fairness on the issues of the day in that country. Where are they in campaigning against these massive violations of human rights and loss of life? And where are they in campaigning on the rights of women in the Middle East and Central Asia? Are these people the sort of people who would be the first to suffer from these fundamentalist and mediaeval attitudes that they are actually supporting and fellow travelling with? What about Gilad Shalit, for whom on 25 June this year we observed the passing of five years of captivity, where Hamas has not admitted the ICRC to even observe his condition? Where are the human rights voices in support of Gilad Shalit amongst these people who are conducting this BDS campaign?

Finally, I would call upon Senator Brown to exercise some control or intervention now, particularly in relation to the New South Wales branch of his party, which is running off on this agenda dictated by elements of the Socialist Alliance and moving well away from their environmental concerns of the past by supporting this disgusting anti-Semitic campaign. I would call on Senator Brown to intervene in the New South Wales branch and bring that party back to its priority concerns in relation to legitimate issues on the environment.

In tribute to Nancy Wake today, I hope that this generation of Australians will be as forthright in standing up to be counted against the forces of evil as she was.

Pr oceedings suspended from 12:59 to 16:00