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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-11-11 Daily Xml
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Remembrance Day

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (14:10): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, the guns fell silent on the Western Front. This moment in time marked when hostilities ceased on the Western Front, and today has become synonymous with solemn commemoration and reflection for generations across the last century.

In the weeks before Remembrance Day in 2018, I had the privilege of visiting the Western Front in France. I went to the Heath Cemetery, a short drive from Villers-Bretonneux. There I was honoured to be able to place a cross at the gravesites of three South Australian soldiers. To stand on the Western Front and to honour our soldiers at the place where they served and many had fallen—men unknown to us today but to whom we remain enormously indebted 100 years later—was remarkably humbling.

Today and every day, we acknowledge and remember the brave South Australians who paid the ultimate sacrifice and those who returned home bearing both the physical and psychological scars of war. Today, we also remember the many families who mourned deeply and also the families who supported their loved ones in the months and years after coming home.

At 11 o'clock today, many across the state stopped to acknowledge the service and sacrifice of those who served in World War I. South Australians gathered at small services at schools, memorials and individually, in our regions and across Adelaide, to show how the events that transpired over a century ago are still very much part of our social fabric.

Today is also about recognising all those who have served in subsequent conflicts and peacekeeping operations. I take this opportunity to acknowledge all those who are currently serving and their families who continue to make sacrifices every day to ensure the security of our nation. Today, we bring your service to the forefront of our collective minds and we say thank you.

The year 2020 is also the 75th anniversary of Victory in the Pacific and Australia's involvement in World War II. On 15 August 1945, while there was an understandable outpouring of jubilation and relief that the war was over, there was also a palpable sense of loss and grief across communities for those who would not be returning.

This pain can still be felt 75 years later and, on days like today, should be acknowledged. So whether you served in the First World War or in a conflict since, we the people of South Australia say: thank you for your service; we are forever in your debt and you are forever in our minds. Lest we forget.

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