Mike Kelly (Eden-Monaro, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Defence Support) Share this | Hansard source

It is a great privilege to be able to speak this afternoon on a positive note in that, wonderfully, Trooper Mark Donaldson VC is still with us, which is something in itself to celebrate given that so many past Victoria Cross winners were awarded it posthumously. Of course the acts that are involved in achieving the award of a Victoria Cross obviously involve a great deal of personal risk, being risk to life and limb. It is wonderful that we have a living VC member with us now in Trooper Donaldson VC. Just saying those words ‘Trooper Donaldson VC’ really does send a tingle up the spine. When I first heard the news that we had a new VC for this generation, I was really excited and thrilled, as I have in my portfolio responsibilities for the honours and awards issue. Also, the day that the actual award was presented to Trooper Donaldson at Government House was a memorable occasion because, as has been mentioned, Keith Payne VC was present. In effect, we had the two representatives of the book-ending of the VC in Australian recent history in that Keith Payne was awarded the last of the imperial VCs and then, after a 40-year intervening break, we had Trooper Donaldson being awarded the first of the VCs for Australia.

It was wonderful to have the two of them there together. Keith Payne observed that he did not understand how Trooper Donaldson had actually survived that engagement. You read these words of his engagement on that day and they roll off the tongue when you say, ‘He moved rapidly between alternate positions of cover, engaging the enemy with 66 millimetre and 84 millimetre anti-armour weapons as well as his M4 rifle.’ But to reflect on that for a second, he was, in effect, utilising three different weapon systems in this engagement. Of course, none of them are light or easy to be proficient with in the circumstances of a hot engagement. It just goes to illustrate the incredible professionalism of the special forces personnel that he was able to effectively use those three weapons systems at the same time. Really, that should tell people of the standard of the special forces soldiers that this country is so privileged to have at its service.

Trooper Donaldson VC is not a stranger to the risks that he was taking when he was involved in this engagement because on 12 August 2008 he was wounded in action in a night operation in Oruzgan province. So it is not as if he did not understand the risks that were involved in what he was doing. I think that adds an extra element to the impressiveness of his particular physical actions and courage on the day, and certainly they were in the finest traditions of the VCs as so many of the Australian VCs have involved the rescue of mates and the selflessness of looking after fellow soldiers serving in those environments. As the member for Fadden pointed out, he rescued an Afghani interpreter, so his selflessness was not only extended to Australians but also to his Afghani colleague.

Trooper Donaldson VC has also served in East Timor and Iraq as well as Afghanistan. He has only been a member of the Australian Army since 18 June 2002. So, in these short years, this individual has had three significant deployments, and we certainly have come to rely very heavily in recent times on our special forces in these environments. The reason is that the special forces soldiers, with their incredible professionalism and skills, give us the rapier that we need to deal with these counterinsurgency situations. You have a couple of options when you are in these circumstances. You can try to fall back on firepower and incur some of the massive collateral damage that is sometimes involved with that. In a counterinsurgency environment, that will often entail a loss of support amongst the general community and alienation, pushing people into the arms of the insurgents that you are fighting. And so to have this capability where we can isolate the enemy to engage with them as a rapier in a directed, targeted and surgical operation gives us and the international community great capability of pursuing our efforts in this counterinsurgency struggle that we are engaged in at the moment in Afghanistan.

During the break we had a discussion in the community about the comparisons of courage. Certainly since I have been in this place I have come to appreciate very much the political and moral courage of the people who enter parliament on both sides of this House. I particularly think of people like the member for Kooyong and the great courage he has displayed in his political life. But I do think it is wrong to compare that courage with the courage of a VC winner like Trooper Donaldson. Unless you have actually stood there and faced the physical threat of having your limbs ripped from you, of having 7.62 millimetre rounds tearing through your body, hot shrapnel burning into you, seeing comrades or colleagues or other people in the vicinity torn apart by explosives, knowing that any moment of your existence in those theatres could be the last on two legs or with all of your limbs and faculties, or of your time on this earth, then I think you just cannot compare the respective levels of courage that are required in those circumstances. Upon reflection, those who might have made that comparison will think better of that.

As I say, I certainly would not want to detract from the courage that is required in politics in this place, but Trooper Donaldson VC occupies a special place in the esteem of this community for the special courage that he has displayed. The VC is a very distinct part of our culture and history. It resonates so deeply with Australians, and that is because it really does encompass the values that Australians hold most dearly—the values of not only the physical courage to face the enemy but also the courage to look after your mates and to put your mates and your unit before yourself.

Lastly, I would like to highlight the fact that Trooper Donaldson VC, by his actions and by the award of this decoration, has served as an incredible inspiration to the rest of his colleagues in the ADF. The news of this award went like an electric current right through the Australian Defence Force. It has inspired his colleagues and comrades and all of us who have worn the uniform to aspire to better and higher, to match the achievements of Trooper Donaldson, at least in effort if the circumstances do not offer opportunities requiring the physical courage that he displayed in that situation. I salute Trooper Donaldson and I salute the men and women of the Australian Defence Force who are contributing in whatever way they can in tribute to the courage and the sacrifice of all members of the Australian Defence Force in our operational commitments.

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