John Faulkner (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Vice-President of the Executive Council) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to move a motion relating to the deaths of Sapper Jacob Moerland and Sapper Darren Smith.

Leave granted.

I move:

That the Senate record its deep sorrow at the death of Sapper Jacob Moerland and Sapper Darren James Smith on 7 June 2010 while on combat operations in Afghanistan and place on record its greatest appreciation of their service to our country and tender its profound sympathy to their families in their bereavement.

On behalf of all senators, I express my heartfelt condolences to Sapper Moerland’s mother, Sandra; father, Robert; sisters, Bethany and Laura; and fiancee, Kezia; to Sapper Smith’s wife, Angela; son, Mason; and father, Graeme; and to other members of both families and all their friends. Sapper Smith was a loving husband and father and a remarkable person. His wife Angela said:

He was very passionate about his job and … always put others first … whether it was his mates in the Army or at home with his family and friends.

Sapper Jacob Moerland was a loving son, a very good brother to his sisters and a strong support to his fiancee, Kezia. His exuberant personality will be sorely missed by his family and all those who knew him, particularly his comrades in the service. Both these men put their mates first. Both displayed the true qualities of an Australian soldier: courage, loyalty, resilience, determination. It was as mates that they died together.

Today our thoughts are also with the members of the 2nd Combat Engineer Regiment, who are deeply mourning their loss. I have met many men and women of the Australian Defence Force and am always impressed by their professionalism and courage, and I am told by those who knew and served with them that Sapper Moerland and Sapper Smith were two of the finest. Sapper Moerland was a loyal soldier committed to serving his country and helping the people of Afghanistan. His passion and dedication exemplify the finest qualities of those serving in the Australian Defence Force. Friends and colleagues remember ‘Snowy’ Moerland as a highly skilled soldier. Sapper Smith was a brave and dedicated soldier. He had a very close bond to his explosive detection dog, Herbie, who also died in the incident. Like Sapper Moerland, Sapper Smith was committed to serving his nation and protecting his colleagues, despite the risk to himself.

Both Sapper Moerland and Sapper Smith were posted to the Brisbane based 2nd Combat Engineer Regiment. They were popular and valued members of the regiment and the Army. For both soldiers this was their first tour of duty to Afghanistan, serving as members of the 1st Mentoring Task Force. Tragically, on 7 June 2010 the young lives of Sapper Smith and Sapper Moerland were cut short by an improvised explosive device during a dismounted patrol while conducting operations in the Mirabad valley in Oruzgan province. They were 26 and 21 years old. These soldiers and their families are owed a special debt of gratitude that can never be repaid.

All of us in this chamber know that we are engaged with the international community in a very challenging campaign in Afghanistan. Our troops in Afghanistan are doing a very difficult and dangerous job. Sappers, or military engineers, have a heavy responsibility and face special dangers. One of their roles, put simply, is to clear the way and make it safe for other troops to move. In Afghanistan, sappers such as Jacob Moerland and Darren Smith wage a daily battle against those deadly, brutal, indiscriminate weapons of the Taliban: improvised explosive devices. It is a battle of steady nerves and clear heads, rather than of guns and rockets. But, as we have been reminded this week, it is just as dangerous. Sapper Moerland and Sapper Smith served their country with great distinction. Their loss of course reminds us of the dangerous conditions that are faced every day by our soldiers in Afghanistan. It also reminds us just how brave our soldiers are.

Today, as we offer our deepest sympathy to the families, friends and comrades of Darren Smith and Jacob Moerland, we say to them: we will never forget you; we will never forget all the brave Australian soldiers that we have lost in the fight against the Taliban. As part of his deployment, Sapper Smith has been awarded the Australian Active Service Medal with the International Campaign against Terrorism clasp, the NATO Service Medal and the Afghanistan Campaign Medal. He has also received the Return from Active Service Badge and the Australian Defence Medal. Sapper Moerland has been awarded the Australian Active Service Medal with the International Campaign Against Terrorism Clasp, the NATO Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal and the Return from Active Service Badge.

These losses are a sombre reminder of the cost of this conflict. This is the nation’s first multiple combat fatality since the Vietnam War, almost four decades ago. I am grateful that I was able to pay my respects to these fallen soldiers as they were returned to Al Minhad Air Base on their journey back to Australia. On Sunday, together with the Chief of the Defence Force, the Chief of the Army and representatives of the opposition, I joined family members at a moving ramp ceremony at Amberley air base to mark the return home of these two Australian soldiers.

I have spoken with family members of both families and I acknowledge the extraordinary support those families have given to these young men. I want today to acknowledge their sacrifice too, and the absolutely devastating loss that they have suffered. On behalf of the Australian government, I offer my deepest sympathy and support to Sapper Smith and Sapper Moerland’s families and friends. I assure them that the courage and the sacrifice of these two fine young Australian soldiers will never be forgotten.

David Johnston (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The opposition joins with the Minister for Defence in expressing our deep sadness and sorrow over the deaths last week of Sappers Darren Smith and Jacob Moerland while on active service in Afghanistan. All Australians share the grief of their families and loved ones and our hearts go out to them. Australians have been deeply moved by the ceremonies at Tarin Kowt base, where Darren Smith and Jacob Moerland, known to their mates as Smithy and Snowy, began their journey home, and when they returned to Australian soil at RAAF Amberley.

There is no greater sacrifice an Australian can make than to give his life in the service of his country. On behalf of all coalition members, I express my deep condolence to the parents of Sapper Smith and Sapper Moerland, to Darren Smith’s widow, Angela, and young son, Mason, and to Jacob Moerland’s fiance, Kezia. My parliamentary colleagues the shadow minister for defence, science and personnel, the Hon. Bob Baldwin, and the shadow parliamentary secretary for defence, Stuart Robert, a former member of the Australian Defence Force, both recently visited Afghanistan, where they had the opportunity to meet our troops and to thank them personally on behalf of the opposition and of all Australians for the fine work they are doing in the most difficult and dangerous of circumstances.

Our troops in Afghanistan are making a difference to the lives of all Afghans through their efforts to build the necessary infrastructure and public facilities that are absolutely vital and necessary for the sustainment of good governance. My two parliamentary colleagues also had the privilege of meeting many of the very great and proud combat engineers on the ground in Afghanistan, including, may I say, Sapper Smith. They can attest that Darren Smith and Jacob Moerland were fine professionals, like all their colleagues, who loved the job they were doing. Both exemplified the ANZAC qualities of perseverance, mateship and, may I say, steely and professional courage. They also clearly understood the contribution the Australian Defence Force is making to ensure that Afghanistan does not again become a safe haven for terrorists, a task both vital for the security of their fellow Australians and more generally for making the world a much safer and better place.

I hope that this knowledge of the contribution of Darren Smith and Jacob Moerland will in time be of some consolation to their loved ones. Their deaths take the toll of Australians killed in Afghanistan since 2002 to 13. Their deaths remind us all of the enormous dangers of the mission they are undertaking and of the great bravery, courage and dedication of the men and women of the Australian Defence Force. Again, I extend heartfelt condolences and sympathy at this very difficult time to the families and loved ones of Sapper Smith and Sapper Moerland.

Barnaby Joyce (Queensland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Finance and Debt Reduction) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to concur with the remarks of Senator Faulkner and Senator Johnston on behalf of the two Queenslanders—though one was born in South Australia—Sapper Jacob Moerland and Sapper Darren Smith. It is a very sad day for the people of Gayndah and Burnett, and there will be another service at Ashgrove. The families need to know that the whole nation is incredibly proud of the service their sons gave and that we have the most immense respect for the supreme sacrifice they have given in laying down their lives as they engaged with the enemy on foreign soil that so we do not have to engage with them here.

Dealing with IEDs, which are such insidious devices, as was ably extolled by both Senator Johnston and Senator Faulkner, requires the utmost bravery from a person who knows the imminent danger they are putting themselves in. As they tried to disarm these devices, they would have known exactly the threat that their lives were under. I want also to acknowledge the camaraderie and the great connection there would have been with the dog, Herbie, who also lost his life. There is a special relationship between serving members and these animals that happily go forward with them.

There is great sorrow that will be felt by the families of both these young men, Sandra, Robert, Bethany, Laura, Jacob’s fiancee, Kezia, Darren’s wife, Angela, and father Graeme. Also there are all the serving Defence members at Enoggera Barracks who would be feeling the loss of one of their colleagues and one of their mates from the 2nd Combat Engineer Regiment.

These people know that though these lives are an immense loss to the family there was no waste. This was for an incredible purpose—that is, for the safety of our country. We can be here and enjoy the freedoms we have while others put themselves in peril willingly, with pride, so that we can be safe. Across the parliament we offer the family our bipartisan support and that will continue on every day as we remember the sacrifice that they have put in. We will be forever grateful for the work they have done. Our thoughts and prayers remain with these families in these extremely trying times.

Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Australian Greens I join with the rest of the Senate, this parliament and indeed the people of Australia in expressing our warmest condolences to the families, the associates, the 2nd Combat Engineer Regiment and all of our combat troops in both Afghanistan and Australia after the loss of these brave young Australians. Sappers Jacob Moerland and Darren Smith were very young men. They had potentially marvellous lives in front of them and that has all been sacrificed for this nation.

One can only hope that the motion before the Senate and the words that we speak will add in some way to the sorely needed help to salve the irreconcilable loss for the families of Sappers Moerland and Smith. They died in the Mirabad Valley of Afghanistan, but they and their 11 colleagues who were killed earlier in this war in Afghanistan will live on forever on the Wall of Honour back home in Australia.

Steve Fielding (Victoria, Family First Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I also join in the condolence motion on behalf of Family First. There is no greater sacrifice than laying down one’s life. We enjoy freedom and safety because many have gone before us and continue to put their lives at risk to keep us all safe and free. Our hearts and prayers go out to Kezia, Angela, two-year-old Mason and parents, families and friends. When I think about the work that Sappers Moerland and Smith were doing, which was clearing the route at the front of a patrol when an improvised explosive device was detonated, it is hard to imagine how they could put their lives at risk in that way; but they did it, and many others continue to do it for our safety and freedom. It is something that we should never forget about people that do this. We are grateful for it. We are indebted to them, and to their families and friends we say thank you.

Question agreed to, honourable senators standing in their places.