Ann Sudmalis (Gilmore, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak of Remembrance Day tomorrow, for each one of us will be commemorating Remembrance Day at the 11th hour on 11 November. It is a most important moment for all of us.

Recently, I had the unexpected privilege of going to the Bomana Cemetery in Papua New Guinea. I was accompanied by a member from the other side who is in the chamber today, Damian Drum from the Nationals. We stood there in complete reverence, looking across an amazing sea of white headstones for many of our Australian servicemen—and the one-odd servicewoman—who had served in PNG for our nation. It was unexpectedly special. We stood there, side by side, and laid wreaths to commemorate the lives of these service men and women.

I would ask that all of us remember tomorrow that it is about more than just laying a wreath at a commemorative ceremony. It is about remembering those who were there for us at the behest of our governments, so treat it with some solemnity. If you are not able to go to a ceremony then take time out in your workplace to think for a few minutes about the losses that some of these families sustained. Some of those lost died at the age of 22. We need to remember this loss. Lest we forget.

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