An Update from the Minister of Veterans’ Affairs
It’s been nearly one year since I took up the office of Minister of Veterans’ Affairs. It’s been a busy and exciting time, and I’ve been privileged to meet a number of you personally while working with the issues facing New Zealand’s veterans.
September 2009 in particular was a very special month for me. On 1 September, I had the honour of representing New Zealand at the international commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II. World leaders gathered in the city of Gdansk in Poland where, 70 years earlier, Hitler’s forces had started their bombardment of Polish positions in an unprovoked attack.
The commemoration ceremony took place at the Monument of the Defenders at Westerplatte. It was a sobering place to commemorate the anniversary of the outbreak of war; the Westerplatte garrison was the very first place attacked by the Nazi forces during the invasion of Poland. The defenders of Westerplatte resisted the invaders for seven days before running out of ammunition.
On behalf of the New Zealand Government and people, I placed a lit candle at the Monument of the Defenders, along with leaders such as German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
Over 140,000 New Zealanders served overseas in the Second World War; more than 11,000 never came home. In terms of the global scale of loss and suffering of World War II, with more than 50 million people killed worldwide, that figure may seem relatively minor. Yet there was hardly a family or community in New Zealand not affected by our nation’s sacrifice. I was proud to honour the courage and commitment of our veterans at the 70th anniversary commemorations. I was also touched by the appreciative response of the Polish hosts to New Zealand’s attendance at the commemorations. The sacrifices made by New Zealand’s World War II veterans have certainly not been forgotten by those whose aid they went to.
A few days later, I travelled to France where I met with the French Secretary of Defence (Veterans’ Affairs), Hubert Falco. It was a great opportunity to affirm the ties of shared history of our nations over two World Wars. Together Mr Falco and I led a special ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at the Arc de Triomphe, jointly rekindling the eternal flame which has burned in memory of the dead of both World Wars for over 70 years. Parisians, New Zealanders and veterans turned out as a mark of their respect. It was fitting that the ceremony took place on 3 September, the 70th anniversary of France’s declaration of war in 1939.
The overwhelming impression I gained in France was of abiding gratitude of the French people for the huge sacrifice of New Zealanders in the defence of France, particularly during the First World War. After Paris, I travelled to the towns of Le Quesnoy and Longueval, both of which hold very special meaning for New Zealanders.
The most moving part of my journey was a visit to Caterpillar Valley Cemetery, where the memorial commemorates the more than 1,200 officers and men of the New Zealand Division who died in the Battle of the Somme in 1916, and whose graves are unknown. A significant proportion of the 5,500 graves in Caterpillar Valley are those of New Zealanders, although most of these remain among the 4,227 unidentified New Zealanders buried throughout France and Belgium from the First World War. On 6 November 2004, it was from the cemetery that the remains of an unidentified New Zealand soldier were removed and brought home to be laid to rest in the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at the National War Memorial in Wellington. Seeing the graves and memorials of so many of his comrades in arms was poignant, and will certainly remain with me. Those men paid the ultimate price for the peace and freedom of others, and their courage and sacrifice remains an inspiration for all those who continue to fight against oppression an tyranny to make a safer world today.