Kia ora,
This month is special because we celebrate ANZAC Day. This is a time for all New Zealanders to recognise and honour those who have served our country in war. It is also a time to show pride in our national identity. Over many years l have noted the increasing numbers of young people and families attending ANZAC Day events.
It’s hard for many of us who have not served as military to imagine the physical and emotional challenges experienced by our service personnel. I am fortunate that I had the opportunity to visit two of the special places that saw Kiwis die fighting for our country and reflect on their courage.
In April 2000 l accompanied Prime Minister Helen Clark and Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, to Gallipoli to celebrate the 75th anniversary of New Zealand and Australian troops coming ashore at ANZAC Cove on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey. It was an honour to be there and see the rugged hills our boys had to climb under withering fire from the Turks.
In 2003 I led a New Zealand delegation to travel to the northern Solomon Islands to commemorate the role New Zealand troops played in the Solomon Islands campaign against the Japanese. This mission was very personal for me as my father, corporal Joseph Carter, aged 19, was one of those Kiwi soldiers that landed under fire on that tropical beach in late October 1943, sixty years before.
As l stood in the oppressive heat of the northern Solomons in 2003 l thought about my young father in his army gear carrying his weapon, under fire and struggling ashore onto that contested tropical beach. I am sure he was scared and unsure whether he would live or die that day. To be prepared to die for your country is the ultimate sacrifice. I am glad that so many west Aucklanders come out each ANZAC day to honour those who served in our country’s armed services.
Ngā mihi,
Chris Carter
Chair, Henderson-Massey Local Board
