Guy Barnett (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—Tasmanian-born Lieutenant Colonel Harry Murray is Australia’s most highly decorated soldier and I believe his story deserves to be told. He was awarded the Victoria Cross, the CMG, the DSO and Bar, the DCM and the Croix De Guerre. Lieutenant Colonel Murray was also the most highly decorated solider in the Commonwealth in World War I. While there are a few Australian soldiers with more medals—all well deserved indeed—by merit, no other Australian soldier is more highly decorated than Lieutenant Colonel Murray. Given the significance of Harry Murray to Tasmania, and indeed to our nation of Australia, I am thrilled to be able to say tonight in this place that the full collection of Harry Murray’s medals and some of his personal effects will soon go on display for the first time ever. I will say more about the details of that display shortly.

I have worked very closely with the Murray family to bring Harry Murray’s medals and other personal effects to Tasmania as telling his story for all Tasmanians—and for all Australians—is particularly important. Murray plays a pivotal role in our rich military history. I would particularly like to thank Harry Murray’s son, Doug Murray, and his son, Chris Murray, and all the Murray family for giving all Tasmanians—and indeed all Australians—access to this unique display.

Harry Murray was born in Evandale, in Tasmania’s north, on 1 December 1880. He worked as a farm labourer in his early years and began his military career at age 21, when he joined the Launceston Artillery as a gunner in 1902, serving for six years. After a brief hiatus where he moved to Western Australia to work as a timber cutter or gold courier, Murray enlisted in the 16th Battalion AIF in 1914, at the outbreak of World War I. He was then sent to fight at Gallipoli, where he was awarded his first medal, the Distinguished Conduct Medal.

It was on 4 and 5 February 1917 that Murray won the Victoria Cross during action which lasted for nearly 48 hours at Gueudecourt, in France. Murray led a force of 140 men in an assault on a position known as Stormy Trench. During the battle he distinguished himself by encouraging his men, setting an example, leading hand-grenade bombing parties, leading bayonet charges, rescuing the wounded and carrying them to safety, crawling out in no-man’s-land on reconnaissance, rallying his men and saving the situation by sheer valour. They were forced to withdraw due to the overwhelming enemy firepower, and only 48 of the 140 survived. Murray went on to fight in further World War I battles, obtaining so many important medals.

The process of recognition began some years ago and took a big step forward when the Murray Memorial Committee was formed in the late 1990s under the auspices of the Evandale History Society, in Evandale, just outside my home town of Launceston. The committee has worked tirelessly to ensure that the memory of Murray remains alive, and their efforts are commendable. The committee has so far established the Murray Memorial Room at Evandale, a museum dedicated to Harry Murray. They were instrumental in establishing a permanent memorial to Harry Murray at Evandale—a life-size replica statue which was unveiled by former Governor-General Michael Jeffery on 24 February 2006. It was a wonderful event on a very hot day. It is a special memory for all of us. I enjoyed working with the Murray Memorial Committee to help raise over $85,000 for the memorial statue and managed to help secure $20,000 in federal funding from the Howard government and $10,000 in state government funding for the statue, which was crafted in solid bronze by renowned sculptor Peter Corlett. The Howard government also committed $65,000 to the Tasmanian RSL to establish plaques honouring all 13 of Tasmania’s VC recipients.

In July 2006 I was extremely pleased to learn that, after much lobbying by me, RSL President Ian Kennett, the RSL and the Murray Memorial Committee, the Australian War Memorial had agreed to honour Harry Murray by displaying his portrait as part of their World War I display. We worked for over 18 months to see Murray’s portrait included in the display. Murray was previously only recognised through a postcard sized picture. The inclusion of Murray’s portrait was yet another important step in seeing Murray’s achievements recognised as an important part of Australia’s military history.

I take this opportunity to thank the former President of the Murray Memorial Committee and Evandale History Society, Lieutenant Colonel David von Stieglitz, and the current President, Laurie Wotherspoon, for all their hard work in keeping the achievements of Murray alive.

In early 2010 I was disappointed to learn that Tasmania would be left off the national Victoria Cross tour honouring nine of Australia’s Victoria Cross recipients who earned their medals at Gallipoli. Many disappointed members of the Tasmanian community, including the RSL, joined me in lobbying the Australian War Memorial to bring the tour to Tasmania. I introduced a motion in the Senate, which was indeed successful. Over time, after some effort, we achieved success. In late November 2010 the tour arrived at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery and was met with resounding support from the Tasmanian community, with over 20,000 people viewing the display in just a few weeks—a fantastic result.

It was early in 2010 that I began discussions with the Murray family, writing to Harry’s son, Doug, in Townsville to ask whether they would consider allowing Harry’s medals to come to Tasmania for public viewing. I was thrilled when Doug Murray agreed to allow the priceless medals and other memorabilia to come to the state for the first time ever. A few weeks ago Doug’s son, Chris, and his wonderful wife, Sue, arrived in Tasmania with the medals and several of Harry Murray’s personal effects, including a slouch hat with a bullet hole through the rim. How the bullet actually went through that rim is a story to be told. There was also a compass, original Gallipoli maps and the map case, a cigarette case and a telescope. Indeed, there is a special story to be told about the telescope, but that is for another time. It is truly a magnificent collection.

While Chris and Sue Murray were in Tasmania we had the opportunity to enjoy a lunch in their honour with members of the Murray Memorial Committee, the Evandale History Society and other supporters at Clarendon Homestead near Evandale. In addition to Laurie Wotherspoon and David von Stieglitz, I acknowledge Teccie Cruse, Brian Bean, Fred Ralph, Kevin Best, Lois Wotherspoon, Richard Mulvaney from the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery in Launceston, and Jenny Carter.

Tasmanians—in fact, all Australians—will have the chance to view this unique exhibition at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery in Hobart when it opens next week on 31 March until 8 May. It will then be on show in Launceston at the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery from Monday 16 May until 26 June. I commend and thank these two wonderful Tasmanian museums for their support of this important display. In particular, I thank Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery Director Bill Bleathman and his deputy, Peter West, and their team, as well as the Director of the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Richard Mulvaney, and his team. This truly is a priceless opportunity for Tasmanians and all Australians. I am incredibly grateful to the Murray family for lending these materials to our state.

The importance of telling stories such as Murray’s has been the driving force behind much of my work with the veteran community over the years. Ensuring that we pay proper honour and respect to our veterans is indeed important. There is a personal connection, of course, within the Barnett family. My wife’s grandfather was a member of the Light Horse. My own grandfather was in the Royal Flying Corps in World War I, and my great-uncle was a prisoner of war on the Thailand-Burma Railway. Last year I had the emotional experience of visiting the Thailand-Burma Railway with my Senate colleague John Williams and a group of others, including former Thailand-Burma railway POW Cliff Lowien and his son Jeff. We also visited the Changi prison in Singapore.

I was also fortunate enough to visit Gallipoli and Anzac Cove in 2005 for the 90th anniversary, and indeed the Western Front. In April 2008 I travelled to Kokoda, together with two veterans: the then President of the Scottsdale RSL, Bruce Scott, and Ivan Dean MLC from Launceston, as well as 14 others. We tackled the gruelling 96-kilometre Kokoda Track. The trek’s goal was to honour our veterans and to raise money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, both of which were achieved, with over $160,000 raised for that wonderful foundation. Just tonight I met with Mike Wilson, the Chief Executive of the JDRF, to talk about furthering the objectives of the foundation and the interests of people with type 1 diabetes throughout Australia.

While on the Kokoda trek I met with two ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels’. The Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels provided an invaluable service to Australian soldiers during the Kokoda campaign, assisting the sick and wounded and carrying food and medical supplies amidst the harsh terrain. Upon returning to Australia I wrote to the federal government and indeed moved a motion in the Senate, which was subsequently passed, requesting that they be recognised for their invaluable support to our soldiers in World War II. In 2009 the first of the Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels were recognised with official commemorative medallions. Of course I remember the night that Senate motion was passed, and meeting with the PNG High Commissioner. He had tears in his eyes at the time. He was so pleased that after decades and decades—indeed, more than 65 years—his people, the Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels, were officially recognised here in this country, Australia.

I am advised that more than 30 of these medals have now been awarded, and the process of recognition is ongoing. I am also privileged to have been part of the campaign to recognise the contribution of the Elementary Flying Training School, which operated from the Launceston airport during World War II and at which 1,801 pilots trained. Of course, so many of them—nearly a third of them—died during the war. A memorial to their efforts is now set up and established at the Launceston airport.

I also spoke last year at the memorial in Beaconsfield, Tasmania, to the 2/40th Battalion, where my great-uncle served, which was raised mainly from Tasmania and who suffered so much during World War II as prisoners of war. Additionally, in 2006 I released a publication called Our heroes: Tasmania’s Victoria Cross recipients, highlighting the stories of Tasmania’s 13 Victoria Cross recipients, spanning the Boer War, World War I and World War II. The third edition of the publication will be launched next week. It includes a special segment on the heroic actions of Ordinary Seaman Edward ‘Teddy’ Sheean on board HMAS Armidale in World War II—a fine Tasmanian.

Unbelievably, not a single member of the Royal Australian Navy has received the VC, despite many proved instances of bravery. I have been fighting for a posthumous VC to be awarded to Teddy Sheean and I am pleased to advise that that is now not far away. The federal government agreed on 23 February to my request for an inquiry into the posthumous awarding of VC medals for members of the Australian armed forces. This news is a great relief to the families of the veterans concerned. Last October, in the Senate estimates, I raised the need for an inquiry and we finally have action. I only hope that the four- to five-month delay by the federal government in getting the inquiry started will not prejudice the rights of the families of probable VC winners from making a credible submission.

Demonstrating respect and honour for our gallant soldiers, past and present, should remain a priority for our government. The Parliamentary Secretary for Defence, David Feeney, confirmed that this will be an inquiry conducted by the Defence Honours and Awards Tribunal, with hearings and submissions from the public. The terms of reference are yet to be finalised and the inquiry is expected to take many months.

I encourage all veterans and others with relevant information to make submissions at the appropriate time. It is a great sense of achievement and relief to know that a comprehensive review will now be undertaken. Names that may be considered for a posthumous VC include Ordinary Seaman Teddy Sheean, Captain Hec Waller, Captain Henry Stoker, Lieutenant Commander Robert Rankin, John Simpson, of course, and Gunner Albert Cleary. 2011 is the centenary of the Navy and this would be a most appropriate year to formally recognise a hero like Teddy Sheean, bearing in mind that of our 98 VC winners 94 are from the Army and four are from the Air Force.

Finally, for the long-term future of Harry Murray’s medals, this is a matter that the Murray family is still considering and it is very much a matter for them. As a Tasmanian, however, I cannot deny that it would be an incredible privilege for my home state to eventually become the permanent home of these priceless items. Tasmania certainly stands ready to pay tribute and honour to Harry Murray’s achievements and to help ensure that future generations know and understand the significance of his story. Regardless of the decision the Murray family ultimately makes on this important issue, we are incredibly privileged to have these medals and items in Tasmania over the coming months. If we do not tell the story, the story will not be told, and Harry Murray’s legacy and the story of all our veterans will be lost. I encourage all Tasmanians to visit this amazing display over the coming weeks and ensure that the story of Harry Murray lives on for generations to come.

Anzac Day is coming up on 25 April in a few weeks time and I am looking forward to speaking at the invitation of the RSL at Evandale in the Northern Midlands where Harry Murray’s statue is located, and at my home town of Hagley.

In the time remaining I now wish to speak in defence of marriage. Today I have tabled in the Senate 16,506 petitions in support of marriage as currently defined in the Marriage Act 1961. The signatures were collected from Tasmania and around Australia. The large number of petitions collected in only six weeks has sent a message that the traditional definition of marriage is worthy of protection and support.

The marriage debate to date has been adult-centred. There needs to be a far greater focus, in my view, on what is in the best interest of our children. The rights of kids have been neglected in this debate so far. I call on the silent majority in Australia across this country, up hill and down dale, to speak up to express your view in support of marriage before it is too late. Once the definition is changed by this parliament, in my view it will be changed forever. This could well be the last shot in the locker.

In my view the Labor Party is conflicted on this matter. I have said that previously. The Labor-Green coalition is very strong and the influence of the Greens is very substantial indeed. I know that this is something where the very soul of the Labor Party is now being fought over by people within the Labor Party. Putting that to one side, in my view so much of this debate to date has been about the interests of adults rather than the interests of children. Children should not be treated as guinea pigs.

I acknowledge the contribution of Senator Jacinta Collins, who spoke previously to me with respect to the recent Senate report on donor conception, of which I was the chair. We delivered a unanimous report. The key outcome of that report was that the right of children to acknowledge and know both their mother and their father is vital. The right of adults to children should come second to the right of children to know their father and their mother. That report confirmed that the current system is failing. It confirmed that donor conceived individuals have been let down over the last many decades. They deserve much better.

My view is that changing the definition of marriage, such a key institution, is an issue that has implications for the future and that currently there are attempts to rewrite history. Marriage has been a bedrock institution of our society for generations and as an institution it has served our nation well. The law ultimately reflects the fundamentals of human biology and the deep interest of the community in regulating sexual relations between men and women in order to guarantee the best possible environment for raising our kids.

A marriage forum is being held on 30 March next week in Hobart. It is being organised by the Presbyterian Church of Tasmania. It will be held at 7.30 at the University of Tasmania. Keynote speakers include Jim Wallace, from the Australian Christian Lobby, Andrew Corbett, pastor from Launceston, and me. I urge as many people as possible to come and send a message that marriage is important.

The number of petitions that have been tabled today is very large. I would like to acknowledge and read the petition accordingly:

In support of Marriage as currently defined in the Marriage Act (1961)

To the Honourable the President and Members of the Senate in Parliament assembled:

Noting the following:

• that marriage is currently defined in the Marriage Act (1961) as being ‘… the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others, voluntarily entered into for life,’ each element of which is essential to the integrity of marriage and each of which was inserted into the Marriage Act on a bipartisan basis in 2004;
• that marriage is one of the great institutions on which our society is built;
• that marriage provides for a stable family and is the umbrella under which children are nurtured and grow; and
• that marriage is worthy of protection and support;

We, the undersigned petitioners, call on the Senate to support the definition of marriage as currently contained within the Marriage Act (1961)

I thank the Senate. (Time expired)