FLEER, MR H.

Mr HAMILTON-SMITH (Waite) (15:21): There are many South Australians who have made their mark on the nation, some in politics, science, law or the arts. Some of our greatest achievers have been in academia. Many have been recognised and achieved amidst great fanfare. Then there is Hans Fleer AM DCM, who passed away on 5 April. The Victorian Police Academy Chapel at Glen Waverley was packed with soldiers, former soldiers and family. We were all there because we loved this man—a quiet achiever, stoic friend, valiant soldier, loving father and husband, and good mate of so many of his comrades in arms.

Hans Fleer was the Honorary Colonel of the 2^nd Commando Regiment, but he was much more. His father, John, and mother, Ann, arrived with Hans from the Netherlands in August 1956 on the ship Johan van Older Barne Feld. Arriving by train at Woodside, the family later moved to Adelaide where Hans attended school in Glenelg before the family moved to a farm in Maitland for around three years, later returning to Adelaide.

Hans then went to school in Rose Park and at Adelaide High School. He was a high-achieving sportsman who joined the Army Cadets at the age of 17, and then the Regular Army. It was 1966. Hans Fleer went on to serve in the 3^rd, 4^th and 6^th Battalions of the Royal Australian Regiment. I served with him in the Special Air Service Regiment in the 1970s and 1980s and drew him back into the army from his initial farming sojourn in 1991-92 while serving as Commanding Officer of the 1^st Commando Regiment. He went on to serve proudly in 4 RAR and the 2^nd Commando Regiment and in other units.

Hans served in Vietnam from 21 May 1968 until 12 May 1970—two full tours of duty back to back, punctuated by a short period of a few weeks' leave. He was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal, one short of the Victoria Cross. As The Australian reported on Anzac Day this year, on a steamy February afternoon in 1970, nine of Fleer's mates were shot down by Viet Cong, including the commander and the signaller. The Ice Man directed the remaining diggers to cover him while he ran into machine-gun fire on what looked like a suicide mission to rescue injured mates. His unit citation says:

...with complete disregard for his own safety, Hans Fleer moved out under covering fire from his section to initiate the recovery of wounded men. Until this day no-one knows how the hail of bullets missed Hans who, after rescuing the wounded, led the safe withdrawal of his savaged platoon.

Those of us who served with Hans knew an understated giant of a man who rarely talked about himself. He was too busy helping others. Hans's patrol commander in Vietnam, Graham Brammer OAM, said this:

Hans was the consummate professional...I led Hans in war time, followed him in peace time and was his friend for all the time I knew him...He had a way of drawing the best out of his subordinates and always made underachievers feel like they were capable of much more...He was the epitome of a leader.

He led by example, would never give a subordinate a task he wasn't prepared to do himself and was always seeking a better outcome for soldiers to achieve their potential. He was honest to a fault with the highest order of integrity I found in any officer or soldier in my 30 years of service. Without doubt, Hans was the most humble man I knew in my lifetime. He avoided recognition of any kind where possible and his appointment as a Member of the Order of Australia was an honour he accepted with reluctance after a great deal of subtle pressure was applied through various sources.

In acknowledging Hans' contribution to South Australia and this proud nation, I make special mention of his wife, our dear friend Helen, his children, Michael and Melanie, and his mother, Ann, all of whom represented him so proudly at the funeral. I also want to recognise the sterling job done by Hans' good mates Rick O'Hare and Graham Brammer at the service.

Hans Fleer was part of the Vietnam generation, but he was young at heart and very much part of today. Hans grew from a brave young South Australian soldier into a father figure in Australian Special Forces. Generals and soldiers, both young and old, came from far and wide—the United States, the Middle East and elsewhere—to say goodbye. Hans helped take young soldiers from the jungles of Vietnam through counter-terrorism onto the deserts of Iraq and Afghanistan. He brought together the soldierly qualities of moral courage, mental toughness, a dry wit and a sense of mateship. Every one of us whose life he touched was better for having walked beside him. I bring Hans Fleer before the parliament today as an example of the sort of South Australian and Australian we might all aspire to be.