Today, November 11, 2015 marks the 97th anniversary of the Armistice which ended the First World War.

Each year on this day Australians observe one minute’s silence at 11 am.

We pay our respects to the honoured memory of all those who have served in our country’s defence force.

Young men who lost their lives, 100 years ago, in a desperate scramble through heavy enemy fire, up impossibly steep cliffs in a part of the world most had never even heard of.

We remember the thousands interred beneath white crosses amid red poppies in the foreign fields of the Western Front, those buried at sea in the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans and the North Sea.

We acknowledge every generation of service,  through swirling sand and unforgiving mud.  In the skies over Europe and in the jungle dark of Malaya, New Guinea and Vietnam.

In the biting winter of Korea and the baking sun of Afghanistan and in the cause of peace in Africa, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific.

On Remembrance Day, Australians of all ages will join in saying the words of a promise at the very heart of who we are:

At the going down of the sun, and in the morning.

We will remember them.

Remembrance Day marks with historic precision the end of a dreadful conflict. But for those who come home, having served our country in war, there is never such a neat demarcation.

The return to life in Australia, the journey from battlefield to towns and suburbs, can be a difficult one. For those who serve and for the people who love and care for them.

This is why our words of gratitude for service must always be matched by deeds of practical resolve and meaningful support.

Australia must keep our promises, including to a new generation of Diggers, returning to civilian life after Australia’s longest war.

We encourage all Australians to attend a commemoration ceremony in their local community, and to pause for a minute of silence to remember those who have served in our Defence Force and made the ultimate sacrifice.

Remembrance Day plays an important part this year, for the Centenary of Anzac.

More information on commemoration events and services can be found at http://www.anzaccentenary.gov.au

WEDNESDAY, 11 NOVEMBER 2015

 

MEDIA CONTACT: LEADER’S OFFICE MEDIA UNIT – 02 6277 4053

KATE HANNS 0423 974 363