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

What a privilege it is for us to be here today to speak in support this motion of condolence for Private Edward Kenna VC. When he passed away on 8 July, in that period there was a lot of mesmerisation in the world about the passing of Michael Jackson, but I have to confess that that certainly was not my focus. Certainly also for a number of Australians the focus was firmly on the passing of Ted Kenna. It was important for us to do so because it was one of those indelibly sad but important days in our history. It was important because Ted Kenna symbolises and illustrates so much of what is important for us to value, to honour and to emulate in this country.

I heard today the member for Paterson talking about a poem which talked about various professions who owed soldiers various things. It is important for us to remember that so much of our military history is actually about people from those professions becoming soldiers to achieve those things. The history and tradition of the citizen soldier in this country is part of its proudest history. It is those people, like Ted, a plumber from country Victoria, who pick up that challenge and then go away and do incredibly extraordinary things that really tend to help us understand some of the special qualities that we should value in this country and in our society.

I guess those of us who come from rural and regional Australia will readily identify those characters that we find in our country towns and communities who have so much of that spirit of sticking their hands up, volunteering and community service. That was Ted. Before he joined up in the second AIF Ted had been part of the civilian military forces. He had been a reservist. He had already been part of that contribution to his community in so many ways, including in that military respect. There was a bit of hesitation on Ted’s part when the Second World War broke out because he was a bit reluctant to take orders—which is, of course, another characteristic of Australians. The essence of that is the quality of Australians that gives rise to their ability to use their initiative, which has served us so well in so many circumstances.

We have heard details of the battle that Ted was involved in—an incredible act of courage. That was just one layer of what was an incredibly difficult experience for all of our soldiers in New Guinea, given the terrain, the conditions and the diseases that they had to endure. On top of that, they had to engage in such deadly, vicious and brutal combat against an enemy that knew no bounds in its brutality—that great, malevolent evil against which they fought. He does illustrate how important it is for individuals to stand up and do that. So much of our history has depended upon these individuals who are prepared to take on these acts of courage, sometimes in the face of opposition from colleagues. Madam Deputy Speaker Moylan, you probably understand that experience. It is so important for us to honour and emulate that experience. In the battle in which he participated he also saved the lives of his colleagues. That Australian understatement was again illustrated when his colleagues turned to him and said merely, ‘Good shooting, Ted,’ when he saved their lives and resolved that situation.

I talked about the evil that he fought against. It was a privilege to be, along with the member for Berowra, at the Burwood ceremony for the Sandakan incident—or atrocity—during World War II. Nothing illustrates more the evil that these soldiers were fighting against in that very episode. I mentioned earlier that had 40,000 fatalities in World War II, nearly 2,000 of those in that Sandakan incident. This certainly was an important cause for this country that these soldiers were engaged in. Not long after this incident, we know that Ted was severely injured due to an explosive bullet round into his mouth. He was told at the time that he was likely to die, and his response to that was simply, ‘Pigs!’ Nothing could illustrate the man more than that comment. There was a little personal connection for me in Ted’s subsequent history, in that, during his time in Heidelberg hospital, my grandfather was also in Heidelberg hospital recovering from his severe malnutrition and conditions that he had acquired as a prisoner of the Japanese on the Burma-Thai railway. They shared that time together in Heidelberg hospital.

Ted, in his laconic way, described how that was to his benefit, because, as was mentioned by the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, he met his wonderful wife, Marjorie, there. What a special woman she must have been, and still is, but particularly at that time. Ted did not receive his Victoria Cross until 1947, so there is no question of him having been a celebrity in hospital at that time, and the wounds that he suffered were terribly disfiguring. Nevertheless, Marjorie was able to see past all that and formed a relationship with Ted which was to endure for over half a century and which produced four wonderful children, 12 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. So what a special woman Marjorie is. We should also take this opportunity to pay tribute to her at this time.

I mentioned that Ted was a great contributor to society in general, and that is what we should also acknowledge here—not just those moments of his great feats in battle. It is important to note that Ted received the Centenary Medal for his services to veterans—a decoration that was created in 2001 by the previous government. Ted was one of the first recipients of that medal for his services to veterans. That in itself illustrates what kind of man he was. As we know, famously, he also received the Victoria Cross. It is interesting that often that decoration subsequently becomes a cross to bear. It is funny how a soldier will go through extreme situations of tension, terror and risk to life and then we impose added expectations on them when they receive this decoration. Our expectation requires them to be role models in their subsequent life. But Ted bore all that with incredible good grace and fulfilled all the expectations that we have of our Victoria Cross holders.

I conclude by pointing to the single most important thing in this. We are currently, as I mentioned earlier, engaged in a similar struggle against a malevolent evil which requires the same dedication, endurance and commitment that that great generation delivered. It is very important for us to be worthy of that great generation in our ongoing commitment and support of not only our veterans and their families but also the soldiers who continue to serve, and we must maintain our solidarity in the face of this great challenge.

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