Warren Snowdon (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for External Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Cocos Islands community will host the Sydney-Emden100 'Weekend of Commemorations' during the period 8 and 9 November 2014, 100 years to the day since the First World War naval battle where the HMAS Sydney sank the German battleship the SMS Emden. The events and activities have been developed in conjunction with the Royal Australian Navy to appropriately commemorate the centenary of the Battle of Cocos. In April this year, I was on West Island in the Cocos (Keeling) Islands and was asked to launch the program of events. The official events will be held over two days, showcasing this significant event in Australian and German history and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands as a geopolitically important and unique spot in the Indian Ocean, which they remain.

The events will include an official memorial service on the centenary, to be conducted by the Royal Australian Navy; the official opening of the Sydney-Emden Gazebo and the interpretive trail on Direction Island; displays about the islands' history and Cocos Malay culture and traditions; and the screening of the documentary Cocos 1914: The Encounter between HMAS Sydney and SMS Emden. The documentary was developed by Fact Not Fiction Films, an independent UK film company that in late 2010 attended the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. At this time, filming took place in North Keeling Island, where the still visible underwater wreck of the HMAS Sydney is located. The 52-minute documentary will be available for purchase, along with a range of other merchandise, from the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Visitor Centre.

The Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands, together with the Australian government and Navy, the German Navy, the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Tourism Association and community representatives, have been working very closely together for a number of years to prepare for this significant event in Australia's maritime history. A detailed program will be released in late September and published on the Sydney-Emden 100 website and on the Sydney-Emden 100 Facebook page. The Sydney-Emden reference group represented a talented and skilled cross-section of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands with a dedicated interest to ensure that Australia's first naval battle, between the HMAS Sydney and Germany's SMS Emden, which occurred on 9 November 1914, is remembered with a significant memorial and commemoration near the spot where the battle took place, on the 100th anniversary, on 9 November.

As federal member for the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, I have found the topic of the 100th commemoration of the Sydney-Emden battle has been a regular part of my chats with community members over many years. The islanders are very keen that this centenary be commemorated as an Australian story of great significance, not only for the Royal Australian Navy but for the Australian nation as a whole. As well as islanders commemorating the centenary of their community's direct involvement in the First World War, there is also considerable interest from historians, families and members of the Royal Australian Navy and the German Navy with an interest or link with the HMAS Sydney and SMS Emden. The Cocos Island community has a link to the Anzacs, as HMAS Sydney was an escort ship for the convoy that took the first Anzacs across the Indian Ocean from Albany to the Middle East. I will be attending the events in November, and I encourage all Australians to take an interest.