ANZAC 2010-Speech Erin Yates - Australian Embassy and Mission to the EU

Australian Embassy and Mission to the EU

Belgium-Luxembourg

Embassy address: Rue Guimardstraat 6-8, 1040 Brussels - Telephone: +32 (0) 2 286 0500 - Fax: +32 (0) 2 231 07 88

► ANZAC 2010: Speech by Ms Erin Yates, Australian exchange student

Good morning and thank you on behalf of the Australian and New Zealand Rotary students to address this gathering. May I first acknowledge our significant guests, Your Excellencies, Military representatives, ladies and gentlemn and fellow styudents.

My name is Erin Yates and I am from the small rural community of Collie in Western Australia. Our town has lost many young men in both the Great war and the second World War and other conflicts to provide for the freedoms, values and democracy we enjoy today.

At this time 95 years ago, the character of the Australian nation was irrevocably forged, not only at Anzac cove but though out Europe as we stood shoulder to shoulder with our allies in defence of democracy, freedom and all those qualities that are good in mankind.

As I stand before you, if I had been born a young man just before 1900 I could well have been here as a young 18 year old bloke immersed in the awful reality of war. As I close my eyes I try to reconcile, the death of friends daily, the blood guts and gore, the mud and cold and constant hunger, the smell and the fear.

As I enjoy a wonderful year on Rotary exchange in Belgium, my time 95 years ago would have been vastly different.

In 1915 my country was only 14 years old and still trying to discover it’s identity. The courage, devotion, larrikin good nature, heroism and ‘standing by your mates’ quality of these young Australian and New Zealand men has provided todays generation of Aussies and Kiwis, such as we exchange students, with an invitation and welcome worldwide as a result of these qualities and their sacrifice, and for that we will always be indebted.

To the Belgium people who embraced the young Aussie and Kiwi blokes throughout various conflicts and adopted them as their own, we thank you.

In 1915 the only way to see the world as a young lad was to join the Army and go and fight overseas young people the world over now enjoy the opportunities to travel without second thought. At home in Australia, my family will have been up early attending the dawn service and reflecting on the hundreds of thousands of lives lost in conflicts over the years. I know my mum will have marched proudly this morning bearing the medals of my great Grandfather who flew Lancaster bombers during Worldwar 2. My dad for many years took my sister and I to the Dawn Service, so in the dark we could personally and individually reflect in the enormity of the sacrifices made. Not much was ever said at the dawn service. As the bugler plays The last post, the loss of people I have never met became real. Sometimes we’d go over to the Returned Services League and have breakfast with the old diggers.
My family and my home town, just like every town and city in Australia and New Zealand, will reflect on the sacrifices made by so many families who had sons and husbands and in later years daughters and wives who never returned from conflicts overseas. I can still see old Mrs Dewar in her wheelchair as she lays flowers for her son who never returned for the war in Vietnam.

The people in Australia and New Zealand, and all of us here, will also be praying for the safe return of our current generation of military personnel who are servicing in conflicts in areas such as the middle east or on various peacekeeping missions throughout the world. These men and women go about their business with total professionalism and commitment to ensure the enduring values we hold dear and to bring these values to countries bereft of democracy, peace, security and the rule of fair and equitable law. I know Belgium also has military personnel in conflicts and peacekeeping missions throughout the world and we prey for these men and women as much as our own for their safe return to family and friends.

I know from the short time I have spent in Belgium and continental Europe how significant the impacts of the various conflicts have been and like all those here I hope and prey the dark days of war will never again darken the door of our Belgian and European friends.

So as we leave here today share with me in reflecting on the sacrifices made by individuals, families and communities to ensure and the freedom, way of life, democracy and values we share today.

I Thank you for your attention, and also the Australian Embassy here in Belgum for the opportunity to talk today.