Luke Hartsuyker (Cowper, National Party, Deputy Leader of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today in support of this motion of condolence. I can but offer my deepest sympathies to the families of Trooper David Pearce, Special Forces Sergeant Matthew Locke and Special Forces Commando Luke Worsley. Men of this high calibre are not common. These three men, and the men and women of the Australian Army, deserve a special place in our hearts. As soldiers, each of these men knew that they were involved in a dangerous, often deadly profession, yet they chose to serve the people of Australia and to defend our freedom and liberty from those determined to alter our way of life.

In delivering the condolence motion in the House, it was clear in the contribution from the Minister for Defence that his words were spoken with a heavy heart, bearing the weight of the office he now holds. In my contribution, I would like to reflect in particular on the life and service of Sergeant Matthew Locke. Sergeant Locke was from the town of Bellingen in my electorate of Cowper and his passing has had a profound impact on our area. From a small town of around 3,000 people, approximately 1,000 people turned out to pay their respects to Sergeant Locke at a memorial service. Sergeant Locke—or ‘Grub’, as he was known as a youngster—enlisted in the regular army in 1991. He served with the Royal Australian Regiment until 1997, when he successfully completed a Special Air Service selection course. Over the following two years he completed another 15 specialist courses, including ones in demolitions, diving and parachuting.

Sergeant Locke was posted to serve in the 3rd SAS Squadron. During his service in the Australian Defence Force, Sergeant Locke served with distinction in East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan. While deployed in Afghanistan in December 2006 he was awarded the Medal for Gallantry for twice fighting off militia patrols attempting to overrun his patrol’s isolated position, directing air support against militia forces. The following excerpt from Sergeant Locke’s medal citation provides an insight into his character and bravery:

… a patrol, with Sergeant Locke as second-in-command, were tasked with establishing an Observation Post in extremely rugged terrain over looking an Anti-Coalition Militia sanctuary. After an arduous ten hour foot infiltration up the side of the mountain, the patrol was called into action to support elements of the Combined Task Force Special Forces patrol that were in contact with the Anti-Coalition Militia in the valley floor to their north …

During the afternoon, the Observation Post became the focus of the Anti-Coalition Militia who made repeated attempts by day and night to overrun and surround the position. In one such incident the Anti-Coalition Militia attempted to outflank the Observation Post and Sergeant Locke without regard for his own personal safety, led a two man team to locate and successfully neutralise the Anti-Coalition Militia in order to regain the initiative and protect his patrol from being overrun.

This particular incident was followed by another Anti-Coalition Militia attempt to manoeuvre to attack the patrol Observation Post from another flank. Sergeant Locke, again with little regard for his personal safety, adopted a fire position that was exposed on high ground which dominated the planned Anti-Coalition Militia assault. Whilst deliberately exposing himself to intense rifle and machine gun fire from the Anti-Coalition Militia, he again neutralised the lead assaulting elements whilst suppressing other Militia until the arrival of offensive air support. Whilst still under sustained fire, Sergeant Locke then directed indirect fire to effectively neutralise another Anti-Coalition Militia advance on his patrol’s position.

In this age, society holds up actors, athletes and musicians as role models and heroes, but in my mind Sergeant Locke and the other two Defence Force personnel I mentioned are true heroes. Yet Sergeant Locke did not see himself as a hero. When he was asked about the events that led to him receiving the Medal for Gallantry, Sergeant Locke said:

What’s going through your mind is actually doing your job at the time and looking after the blokes with you—and that’s essentially what we spend our whole career training to do. There’s a heap more blokes that deserve the award as much as I deserve the award.

Australia has indeed lost one of her finest sons, and I extend my deepest sympathies to Sergeant Locke’s parents, Norm and Jan, his wife, Leigh, and son, Keegan.

In commemoration of our military history, which has so defined our growth as a nation, there has been a focus on the sacrifice of our service men and women. The sacrifice of the family at home is all too little acknowledged—the endless months of separation, not knowing if loved ones are safe, not knowing if a knock on the door might come with the worst possible news. We should be mindful of the sacrifice which is made by Defence Force families—the long weeks and months of separation from mum or dad, the fishing trips that do not happen, the endless moves from base to base.

I would like to conclude my remarks by reflecting on the words of Padre Dr Graham Whelan, who observed on Remembrance Day 2007:

It is our service men and women, not the reporters who have given us the freedom of the press … and … It is the service men and women not the politicians who have given us the right to life and the freedoms we now enjoy.

Trooper David Pearce, Special Forces Sergeant Matthew Locke and Special Forces Commando Luke Worsley were fine Australians who upheld the values of this nation and were men of which Australia can be rightly proud.

See this speech in context