Ewen Jones (Herbert, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

They say there are only a few times in your life when you will always remember where you were. People a little older than me will tell you they will always know where they were when John F Kennedy was shot. I will always remember where I was and what I was doing when the attacks on the World Trade Centre occurred. Equally, on the other hand, there are things which are highly popular for a very short time and wane dramatically—things like Gangnam Style, Achy Breaky Heart and the like. My dad attended the centenary of Waltzing Matilda in Winton. It was a fantastic time as we celebrated an Australian icon. By the end of the week of celebrations, they were running out of steam. My dad penned the following poem, sitting on the verandah of the Wellshot Hotel in Ilfracombe, in relation to this idea of things running out of steam:

She always was a scallywag

With spirits hale and hearty

And when she heard about Winton

She headed for the party

She had the best time of her life

She partied night and day

But suddenly on Friday night

She upped and passed away

Now it wasn't all the dancing

Or the drinking that had killed her

But the thousand times

She listened to Waltzing bloody Matilda.

I do not say this to denigrate this great work or to be flippant or amusing about Anzac Day. I want to make a contrast between what can happen in our society and what we as a country have just witnessed—something very special. The Anzac Centenary commemorations of the Gallipoli landing will live on in this country for a very long time. It was not just the sincere words spoken so strongly by our Prime Minister. It was not just the thousands of people that stood shoulder-to-shoulder all night in the cold to be on that soil, in that sombre place, for that sombre service. It was the families who got up all over the country and attended dawn services commemorating the Centenary of Anzac. It was the community groups who worked together and used the $120,000 each electorate was given by the federal government—both governments, the previous government and this one. In my electorate, the committee was headed by Nick Reilly, and he was ably assisted by Mick Johnson, Andrew Gisinger, Jan Power, and Jeff Jimmison. In every electorate these people were the same. The names changed, and they looked different, but they were the same people. They were the people who cared about their community and who understood that this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to put on record our community's thanks to those who served our country in uniform and those who paid the ultimate price.

In my electorate we approved: a research project, Between Battles: Commemorating the Cultural Lives of Soldiers; an interpretive exhibit; an exhibition of the military history of Magnetic Island; a theatrical presentation, Ginger Mick at Gallipoli; a website project by Pimlico State High School on the Anzacs of Townsville; and we made a strong contribution to the Anzac commemoration activities in Townsville in partnership with the Townsville City Council. It was the council workers, the police, the ADF personnel, the schools, the members of the local RSLs and the emergency service workers who all gave more than was asked to ensure that this day was very special—not just at the main service in Townsville but all around the region.

The Prime Minister spoke, when moving this motion, about the massive crowd in Canberra that morning. I watched the news the following day and the size of the crowds around the country was a testament to the respect in which we hold the people who made this country what it is today. In Townsville it was no different. The stage at Anzac Park is right on the marina and those on the stage look away from the sea and towards the city. It is pitch-black when you get there. You cannot see the crowd. The girls of St Margaret Mary's Bella Voce choir performed at their best and started the day in perfect tune. The catafalque party, dressed in World War One uniforms made their way into place. Mick Johnson was the master of ceremonies and the service started bang on time.

Our Mayor, Jenny Hill, who served as a reservist and whose husband, Shane, served in the AIF, spoke of mateship and courage. This was surely a theme echoed around the country, but it was when she spoke of Townsville's Keane family that the emotion of the day started to take its toll. My mayor spoke of how the brothers, John and Michael, enlisted immediately. Both men, aged 20 and 18, 'Saw action on the Gallipoli Peninsula', as the mayor said. War is hell, and John was medically discharged in 1916, having suffered terribly in the trenches and the bitter winter fighting. Michael served at Gallipoli, Egypt, and France.

A third brother, Patrick, lied about his aged and, when he was found out, he was already on a ship. Tragically, he died of Spanish influenza before he got to serve his country. The mayor said:

Michael would suffer from many illnesses endemic amongst our diggers and suffer the horrors of WWI.

Jenny then said:

Like hundreds of thousands of others at memorials in cities, suburbs, and towns across Australia, I join today to pay respect to Private Patrick Keane, his brothers, and tens of thousands of Australian and New Zealand soldiers who served so valiantly for their country. John and Michael never recovered from the horrors of war. Today, here, with their nephew, Alan Stephenson, we take pride in keeping their memories alive.

It was a truly moving moment.

Brigadier Roger Noble, Commander of 3rd Brigade spoke as all Townsville military leaders speak: with knowledge, pride, and with a slice of originality. He opened his speech with these words:

For 100 years Australian's have gathered to commemorate and remember that fateful landing at ANZAC Cove.

For 100 years we have invoked the sacred commitment— Lest We Forget.

Quickly take a look around you and you will see that we have been faithful to that original and enduring sacred promise. Think about that for a moment. Here we stand together—their sons, their daughters, their grand children, their great grand children, their great great grand children and many who had no direct personal link to them at all. All together; Australians together.

He went on:

On the Centenary of ANZAC it is perhaps most important to reflect on the meaning and purpose of ANZAC Day. In a democracy like ours it is both inevitable and positive that there is much opinion and speculation on this topic. This is as it should be. There is no one 'right' reason or view on what it all means and why it still matters. But to talk, to discuss, to consider, to analyze, to think, to care is the actually the act of remembrance that matters most. It is the ultimate act of respect by the citizens of a free country to those who have fallen in its name.

He spoke of service, of sacrifice, of being optimists even in the face of the absolute facts of their situation. He spoke of how their example, not just as soldiers but as men, have led to an ethos which remains as strong today as ever. Perhaps the greatest compliment is from your enemy. Brigadier Noble quoted Field Marshall Erwin Rommel as saying, 'If I had to take hell, I would use the Australians to take it and the New Zealanders to hold it.'

Just like every other city in Australia, the First World War took a huge toll on our city. Brigadier Noble noted, with solemnity, that there were 165 names on our cenotaph from a total of 1,914 volunteers. That is from a city of only 13,000 people at the time. Every city and town in the country shares statistics like this. It is said that Anzac Day was not a government idea. It grew out of our communities. It is a grass roots, bottom up approach which marks this day as special in our calendar—and so it should be.

As dawn broke we saw the extent of the crowd. As far as the eye could see, there were people. In the dark they were silent. But, as the day broke, they spoke loudly as to our commitment to those who don a uniform and serve our country. They stood shoulder to shoulder all the way up Melton Terrace to Cleveland Terrace. They stood shoulder to shoulder all the way down near Tobruk Pool to one side and past the Coral Sea memorial towards the Criterion Hotel the other side.

The council received funding to simulcast the service at Jezzine Barracks. Credit must go to the council and the private contractors, such as Peter Jepson, for making that a huge success. Later that morning, the main parade was review by Brigadier Noble and Mayor Jenny Hill. The parade was led by Colonel John Simeone. As they started, they marched through an honour guard of Townsville school students. Every available soldier, sailor and air man and woman marched in front of our veterans groups, emergency service representatives and then the schools. It was a brilliant day.

Today, to me, Anzac Day is about those who serve. Sure it is about the Australian Defence Force, but to me it is about those who wear a uniform and put themselves in positions I would never hope to be in. As well as our Army, Navy, and Air Force personnel, my city includes the police, ambulance and fire services and there are nurses. There were nurses in our parades, signifying the fact that service is also behind the firing lines.

The Centenary of Anzac is not a passing fad in my city or my country. It will not be forgotten in my city or my country. It will not blur into a trivia question in my city or country. It will be something about which the people in Townsville will always take pride. It will be something about which the people of Australia will always take pride. I will always remember where I was for the Centenary of Anzac. I will always be able to remember what it was like to be there, representing the Prime Minister at the dawn service in Townsville. It is where I should be, in my garrison city with the people who share the respect of those who paid the ultimate price 100 years ago, all those who have died in service since and all who continue to put their lives on the line at home and all around the world keeping us safe and sound.

I thank the Townsville RSL, the Townsville City Council and the people of Townsville for allowing me to be part of their day, part of our national day of remembrance. Lest we forget.

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