Dean Smith (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise this afternoon to recognise several special occasions, many of them impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, and to pay tribute to the organisations that have in difficult circumstances continued to ensure these events have remained meaningful to their communities and to guests like myself. I'd like to begin, of course, with the Anzac Day dawn services and marches which were cancelled across Western Australia, indeed across the whole country, this year.

On 25 April, we honoured our Anzac heroes very differently, as balconies, driveways and social media became the new platforms where we showed as a grateful nation our gratitude for the sacrifices of our many servicemen and women. The year 2020 represented significant anniversaries both for the Gallipoli landing and the end of World War II, so I was delighted many West Australians could participate in the Anzac Day driveway dawn service and send a strong message of support to our veterans and to the Australian Defence Force community.

It was an honour to pay my respects and privately lay wreaths prior to Anzac Day with the Jewish Community Council of Western Australia president, Joan Hillman, at the Jewish War Memorial at Kings Park. In addition, I was able to join with the Mount Lawley Inglewood RSL vice president, Oliver Lovelle JP, at the Mount Lawley Cenotaph and Wanarroo vice-president, Peter Tuck, at the Wanarroo Memorial Park. I was grateful to be able to pay my respects as a senator for Western Australia, not just for myself and my family, but on behalf of the whole community.

I would like to recognise the deserving recipients of RSLWA life membership and 50-year certificates in the RSL state congress awards that were also announced and celebrated on Anzac Day. Of the West Australians honoured for their devoted service, I'm particularly pleased to congratulate and honour Oliver Lovelle; the Highgate sub-branch past president, Stephen Chamarette; and Geoff Simpson OAM, also of the Highgate sub-branch, of which I'm proud to be an affiliate member. My congratulations go also to the recipient of the prestigious ANZAC of the Year Award, retired Army Lance Corporal David Scott, for his exceptional contribution to RSL Australia, WA veterans and the broader community.

Finally, I wish to acknowledge a number of West Australians who have been recognised in the 2020 Australian Bravery Decorations that were honoured in March. David O'Dowd of Cocos Keeling Islands received a bravery medal for the courage he showed in rescuing two people from a surf rip off the islands. Simon Werne of Kalgoorlie was bestowed with a Commendation for Brave Conduct for his valiant deeds during the rescue of a disabled man from a house fire in Albion, Queensland. Robert Brown of Ashfield, Dennis Collinson of Oakford, Edward Trindall of Bullsbrook and the late William Matson of Bassendean all received a Group Bravery Citation for their conduct during the capture of a violent offender near Fitzroy Crossing in Western Australia's far north.

The WA Korean and Vietnamese communities also commemorated war milestones recently. The Korean Veterans Association in Western Australia marked the 69th anniversary of the Battle of Kapyong, or Kapyong Day, which honours the sacrifice of United Nations personnel, including Australians, in the defence of South Korea. I recognise the work of the Korean Veterans Association in Western Australia, under President Jinkil Lee, for improving knowledge of the battle and what is sometimes referred to as 'the forgotten war’.

It was a privilege to join with Vietnamese Community in Western Australia President Anh Nguyen and many others to remember the 45th anniversary of Black April at Tu Do Park and Koondoola Peace Park on 30 April. Black April marks the capture of Saigon, and ultimately South Vietnam, in 1975. It’s on occasions such as Black April that we also acknowledge the great determination and resilience of the Vietnamese community in Western Australia and indeed across our whole country.

Easter 2020 was unlike any we’ve experienced before. But it was still a special time for WA’s Christian and Orthodox communities, and I was delighted to pass on my special blessings on these occasions. A number of churches across Perth’s northern suburbs streamed Easter services online, which was embraced by many parishioners, and it was heartening to see outreach services, guidance and prayers still being provided at a time when they are most needed.

March and April saw some equally sacred events for Perth’s Jewish, Sikh, Nepalese, Iranian and Indian communities. Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day, is the commemoration of the murder of six million Jews in the Holocaust. In previous years, I would have joined with many others in Western Australia's Jewish community to observe this most solemn event. Instead, I was able to participate in a digital commemoration on 20 April. At the time of this moving tribute, I was reminded of comments made by Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel: 'We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.' I would also add my deepest thanks for the remarks made by Rabbi Solomon in that very solemn commemoration and his very enlightened insights into the importance of the event.

Like Easter, the Feast of the Passover, from 8 to 16 April, was affected by COVID-19. Synagogue services were suspended and our Jewish community across Western Australia was unable to mark the occasion as they traditionally would. However, I was pleased to extend a message of support from Prime Minister Scott Morrison and convey my personal good wishes to all in the Jewish Community Council of Western Australia.

Despite the absence of the usual parades, banquets, reunions and religious ceremonies, I was delighted to wish Nepali Association of Western Australia President Mani Paneru, Honorary Consul of Nepal Fred Brown and Perth’s Nepalese Community a happy, peaceful and prosperous Nepal Sambat, or Nepali New Year, on 13 April.

Due to the suspension of religious services at the gurdwaras, the Sikh Gurdwara Perth Vaisakhi celebration, or Sikh New Year, also on 13 April, was streamed via Facebook. This was another occasion when I could share a well-received message from the Prime Minister to Perth’s Sikh community as well as extend my own Happy Vaisakhi wishes to Sikh Gurdwara Perth President Navtej Kaur Uppal.

Sadly, the Iranian Community of Western Australia had to cancel the Persian Festival of Fire and the Eid Nowruz celebration in March. Fortunately, I was still able to pass on my best wishes and the best wishes of others to ICWA President Morteza Tabatabaee.

I finish with perhaps the most vibrant event of all, which fortunately did go ahead this year. Holi, or the Festival of Colours, was marked by the scattering of coloured powder, or gulal, at the Indian Society of Western Australia's Holi 2020 celebration at Langley Park. My thanks go to outgoing ISWA President Surya Ambati for sharing the joy of Holi with the wider WA community.

These events, and the WA community’s determination to observe their special days of both joy and sadness in spite of the pandemic, have been nothing short of inspirational. It goes to demonstrate the vitality but also the versatility of Western Australia's many ethnic communities.