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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-10-13 Daily Xml
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Matters of Interest

Melbourne Group 99

The Hon. T.T. NGO (15:20): I stand to speak about an Australian story called Melbourne Group 99 (MG99), which was aired on ABC TV on 23 August 2021. This story has many similarities to mine and those hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese boat people. On 16 June 1981, a small wooden fishing boat built for 30 people left Vietnam's Mekong Delta with 99 Vietnamese refugees—men, women, children and infants.

By the fifth day, the boat was breaking and taking in water and the 99 people accepted that the end was near and were praying for a merciful end. As fate would have it, the Royal Australian Navy tracker plane 851 spotted them and called on a nearby HMAS Melbourne to rescue them at dusk in stormy seas.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of that fateful rescue. A reunion with the crew of the HMAS Melbourne was held at the HARS Aviation Museum in New South Wales, where the very tracker 851 that spotted them was being housed to celebrate this special anniversary. It was an opportunity for MG99 Vietnamese Australians and their families to personally say thank you to the officers who saved them from a certain death.

Thor Vo said, 'I have waited for 40 years. Finally, I get to say thank you. Back then, I couldn't speak a word of English.' Stephen Khanh Nguyen, who was a bakery owner for 30 years and the main organiser of the reunion, said it is a connection that was forged in a moment of life and death. He said with heartfelt gratitude, 'We owe you our lives.'

Like many refugees, the MG99 and their extended families have contributed much to the Australian society and economy. They became small business owners, healthcare workers and other professionals. They are now living the Australian dream. The event also changed the lives of many of the crew on board. Former sailor John Tregoning said, 'I think that because of that night when my day comes I'll be able to leave a footprint, something that's going to be here forever. It's made me a better person.'

John Ingram, an officer who oversaw the refugees' welfare and formed a lifetime friendship with Stephen Khanh Nguyen, said the night of the rescue 'was the pinnacle of my career'. We understand John Ingram has been fighting cancer since 2009, which has now spread elsewhere in his body, and he knew it was likely the last time he would be able to get together with anyone. I wish him the very best of health.

For sailor Rob Patterson, a Navy photographer who captured the moment in photos, the event has had a huge impact on him: 'It's a moment that wasn't just a high point of my military career, it was also a high point of my entire life.'

I would like to thank the officers, seamen and aircrew of the HMAS Melbourne and HMAS Torrens, who chose to rescue the refugees without seeking approval from the Navy headquarters 40 years ago. They were heroes to the 99 refugees and they are also my heroes. I want to acknowledge the late Commodore Mike Hudson, captain of the HMAS Melbourne at the time of the rescue, for his leadership and compassion. I leave honourable members with his words in an article. He said:

Sending men, women and children to a watery grave is absolutely abhorrent. Drowning is a terrible way to die, the sea is a very lonely place. You may be in the Navy for 25 years, but you've got to live with your conscience all your life. The MG99 rescue was the highlight of my career.

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