Sourced Content from RNZ (Edited)
Wellington, April 25, 2024
Anzac Day has been marked around New Zealand, the Pacific and at Gallipoli, with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters speaking at the Dawn Service in Türkiye. Please read that story here.
Weather restricts Wellington event
Meanwhile, wind buffeted Wellington’s Hall of Memories as those affected by wars past and present were acknowledged in an intimate ceremony.
The scaled-down national Anzac Service was held in the small room under the Cenotaph at Pukeahu National War Memorial Park after high winds saw a larger, public service cancelled.
The Ministry of Culture and Heritage said that it was “very unfortunate,” but the decision had been made for the health and safety of veterans, visitors and guests.
The Wellington ceremony was among a raft of services held throughout Aotearoa on Thursday morning to mark Anzac Day.
In the Hall of Memories, the walls were adorned with the New Zealand coat of arms, flags, and remembrance plaques, and sunshine streamed through the stained glass windows.
Veterans and dignitaries laid wreaths near a statue named ‘Mother and Children,’ representing families left behind during wartime.
Major General Martyn Dunne from the Royal New Zealand Returned and Services Association (RSA) told those assembled that Anzac Day was a time to remember all those who served New Zealand in times of war. He acknowledged those currently serving around the globe, including those assisting Ukraine.
RNZ Photo by Marika Khabazi
Expanded Purpose
Earlier, Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro said that the purpose of Anzac Day had expanded to include “all other wars and armed conflicts in which New Zealand has been involved, as well as our ongoing efforts in peacekeeping.”
At the Wellington Dawn Service, she extended a special greeting to New Zealand and Australian veterans who had gathered to mark the 30th anniversary of the end of New Zealand Defence Force operations in Somalia.
She also acknowledged the 80th anniversary of many significant campaigns during World War II, among them, the Battle of Cassino, the operations on Nissan Island near Bougainville, and D-Day.
“More than 250,000 New Zealanders had served in war and peacekeeping operations, and of those, 30,000 had died. Every New Zealand community has in some way been touched by our experience of war,” she said.
Australian Defence Force Chief General Angus Campbell said that an “unrivalled heritage” of service linked Australia and New Zealand.
“Their story was one of mateship, bravery and determination against the odds. Today, Australia and New Zealand stand together in an increasingly challenging world. Together, we continue the Anzac story,” he said.
RNZ Photo by Peter de Graaf
Luxon attends Auckland Service
In Auckland, thousands of people, including Prime Minister Christopher Luxon gathered at the Auckland War Memorial Museum for the Dawn Service.
“Anzac Day is sacred. It is a day for all of us to commemorate, remember and be grateful for Kiwi servicemen and women in the past and also in the present who stand up and fight for the values that we believe in as a country. We have democracy and freedom that today because of that service,” he said.
Veteran Steve Matheson, who served in Bosnia in the 1990s and later worked for the RSA, said that he came to the Auckland service to remember.
“There are a lot of old diggers that have gone, so you remember that, but it is also about younger people like me. We have many Afghan veterans and younger people out there who have served their country all over the place,” he said.
Cathedral Service in Christchurch
In Christchurch, veteran Kereama Nepia Chalmers went to the Dawn Service in Cathedral Square on behalf of his family.
Veterans paraded from Worcester Bridge to the Square, and tributes were placed at the Citizens’ War Memorial during the Service.
Chalmers said his grandfather was in the Black Watch and he had uncles who were in the Māori Battalion.
It is a special occasion for me to come along and support them as a soldier and to stand there for them, and to remember them,” he said.
In Kerikeri, Northland, school students organised the Dawn and Civic Services for the first time. Kerikeri RSA President Bill Godfrey, a Vietnam veteran, said that he intended to hand over the responsibility for Anzac Day commemorations to the younger generation.
“That would ensure that the tradition is continued as RSA members age,” he said.
The above Report and two pictures have been published under a special agreement with www.rnz.co.nz
