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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-03-27 Daily Xml
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ANZAC CENTENARY

Ms BEDFORD (Florey) (15:05): My question is to the Minister for Veterans' Affairs. Can the Treasurer inform the house of the planning that is being undertaken in preparation for the centenary of ANZAC?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Treasurer, Minister for Workers Rehabilitation, Minister for Defence Industries, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (15:05): I would like to thank the member for Florey for her question and acknowledge her strong support of the veterans' community in her attendance at many veterans' activities. The centenary of ANZAC in 2015 will be one of the most important commemorative events in our nation's history. It will fall within the broader commemoration of World War I, starting in 2014 and concluding on Remembrance Day 2018.

Media reports this week have claimed that commemorating ANZAC Day may be considered divisive due to multiculturalism, or may be unpopular with young people. Nothing is further from the truth. Here in South Australia our ANZAC Day commemorations have a major multicultural focus and involve a large number of young people from a wide variety of different backgrounds.

The ANZAC Eve Youth Vigil is an event created by the RSL in 2001 that became the Adelaide City Council Community Event of the Year in 2010. Since its inception it has been supported by the state government. The youth vigil is attended by many community organisations and participants from many cultures. The Aboriginal community is involved as well as the Turkish community. Participants have also come from Italy, the Netherlands, Serbia, Ireland, South Vietnam, Greece, Malta, Poland, the United States, Scotland, East Turkistan, the Cook Islands, Somalia, the Philippines, the Ukraine and Tonga.

The concept of the youth vigil is entirely South Australian. It commenced with a vigil at the War Memorial on North Terrace, but vigils are now also conducted at Marion, Blackwood, Morphett Vale, Naracoorte, Port Lincoln, Salisbury and Whyalla. The concept may become nationwide as a Centenary of ANZAC event.

Other plans for commemorating ANZAC are also well advanced, so that we can suitably acknowledge the 60,000 Australians lost at a critical time in our nation's history, as well as a similar number who died soon after. Many of those are among the 4,000 graves in the Australian Imperial Forces Cemetery at West Terrace, carefully tended by the staff of the Adelaide Cemetery Authority and the Office of Australian War Graves.

Members might recall that last year the Prime Minister appointed the Hon. Warren Snowdon MP as Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on the Centenary of ANZAC, and in October last year the membership of the ANZAC Centenary Advisory Board was announced. That board will be chaired by the former chief of the Defence Force, Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston AC AFC (Retired). The Premier and I have already met with minister Snowdon and with Air Chief Marshal Houston.

The Centenary Advisory Board has 16 general and four ex-officio members, including prominent South Australians. His Honour Judge Rauf Soulio, Chair of the Australian Multicultural Council, and Professor Christine Charles, Chair of the Resources Technology Innovation Centre, are among them. I would like to congratulate Judge Soulio and Professor Charles on their appointment. I am sure they will represent our state exceptionally well.

In February, minister Snowdon announced the membership of six working groups that will report to and support the ANZAC Centenary Advisory Board. These groups comprise 48 Australians drawn from all walks of life and include historians, business leaders, academics, journalists, a sports personality, a singer, teachers, artists, former service personnel, an Indigenous Rhodes Scholar, a war widow, two Victoria Cross recipients, and a former politician.

The board and working groups will play a pivotal role in planning for the ANZAC Centenary commemorations and will look particularly at the areas of education curriculum, military and cultural history, business, ceremonial and commemorations, youth, and engagement with state and local government.

I am pleased that South Australia is represented on these working groups by Rebecca Richards, an Indigenous Rhodes Scholar, who is on the Youth Working Group; John Schumann, a well-known singer and songwriter, who is on the Military and Cultural History Working Group; and Mr Bill Denny AM, Director, Veterans SA, who has been appointed to the state and local government working group.

Separately, but as part of the overall commemorative board initiative, ACM Houston has invited distinguished former governor, Sir Eric Neal AC CVO, to be his conduit with South Australia during his pre-commemoration period. Sir Eric is very close to and highly respected by the people of South Australia and will gauge the community pulse as we work towards 2014. I would like to thank Sir Eric for offering his services. South Australia is well advanced. As we approach the centenary of ANZAC, I look forward to updating the house further in due course.

The SPEAKER: Thank you. I did give you a little bit of extra time. The Leader of the Opposition.

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