For This we Remember by Prue Brinkley

Military life today is very different from what was experienced in Gallipoli and also by my Father during WWII.  My Father spoke very little about his time in the war but was very proud when I told him I intended to join the Air Force.  It was not until after his death, nearly two years ago, that I realised our enlistment dates were very similar.  My Father joined the Army on the 25^th March 1941 and my enlistment date was nearly 39 years to the day on the 24^th March 1980.  My Father completed 5 years with the Army serving with both the 2/12 Battalion and the 2/2Machine Gun Battalion and I have completed 25 years (including my Reserve Service) with the Royal Australian Air Force.  Within six months of enlisting my father was enroute to his first overseas battle.  He saw active service in Syria, El Alamein, Lae in PNG and Labuan Island near Borneo.  I understand that during this time he saw many of his friends and some family members give their lives for their country. My father contracted TB during his war service, which affected him for the remainder of his life.

By contrast my service time was very different. But there are some very important similarities.  In 1915 friend and foe respected our Australian troops and during my career I have witnessed the respect given to our troops and whilst I might have a biased view, I believe the respect we have received is in stark contrast to the respect shown during similar campaigns to some of our allies and other Nations.  Australians are respected for their camaraderie, courage, self-sacrifice and heroism and it is these qualities that are referred to as the Australian SPIRIT.  This spirit has been evident through many battles and more recently in times of civil distress both at home and over seas.

My first deployment from Australian soil was in 1996.  This was for humanitarian aid to the Solomon Islands and probably the most gratifying 10 weeks of my Military career.  I was part of a Medical team and we visited many places that had not seen a white person since WWII. Some of the Solomon Islander we encountered were worried that we were at war again.  My role was to ensure that the basics we take for granted, such as suitable drinking water, waste disposal and mosquito control were addresses, attended to and training provided to the Islanders.   Our team contained a WHITE Doctor and many people walked for days to seek his help.

My next deployment was for 6 months in 2001 to East Timor.  This time was with the UN Military hospital in Dili.  The devastation was beyond belief, not only Dili, but even in the most remote locations it appeared that every building had been damaged, generally beyond repair and many people spoke of family that were missing believed dead. My role was to ensure that health and safety for the members of the Military Hospital.  My focus was again on water and mosquito control as Dengue Fever is endemic in East Timor.

My last and most recent deployment was to the Middle East, last year for four months.  Once again I was providing health support, but this time to surveillance aircraft crewmembers that were conducting missions over the Middle East and surrounding areas and their support staff.  Some of my friends have been located in Iraq and Afghanistan and their stories are very different from mine.  In Iraq the Australian contingent lived and worked in one of the Palaces.  They rarely left the compound where the sound of bombs was a constant reminder of the outside danger.  If they did leave the compound they moved within a military cavalcade wearing flack jackets and helmets.  They worked 12 hour days like myself but my time was much less stressful.  My friends who have served at the medical centre in Afghanistan spoke of the horrific injuries due to bomb blasts.  New patients arrived at their compound all too frequently. Luckily no Australian’s have been on those causality lists.

During my deployments I was very rarely placed in situations that put my life at risk, unlike those men and women who served during previous Wars.  Today Australian Military personnel are rarely put in harms way, unless absolutely necessary – the main aim is to preserve life.  Whilst I was in the Middle East our Commander constantly reminded us that our first priority was our safety.  But unfortunately lives are still lost and at times military life can be very harsh and leave life long physical and mental scars. It seems that with every deployment I have been involved in, I have seen some of my comrades lose their life become incapacitated or suffer extreme hardship. 

 

 In the Solomon Islands deployment we had 2 SAS members in our team and they were flown home early as a number of their squad were killed in the Blackhawk crash in TVL.  Had they not been deployed with us they too would have been in that aircraft.  Whilst in East Timor the terrorist attacks were made against the US and notably the Twin Towers in New York.  At the time we were sharing the compound with members of the Egyptian Military. 

 

 We had only arrived in August – the attack took place in Sep and life in the compound was very strained over the ensuing few months’.  During my deployment in the Middle East the Seaking aircraft crashed whilst providing aid to Ache.  The Nursing Officer had been my CO when I was posted to TVL in 2002 and the Medic was a member of the previous deployment at my location.  She had shown us the ropes and made us feel welcome and at ease.  Being so far from friends and family made their loss that much harder to bear.  Within a month of the Seaking crash the Chaplain attached to our deployment suffered a heart attack and returned home to Australia in a comma. There is talk that more Australian troops will be deployed to Afghanistan and the risk of injury, and the death of some of these brave men and women will be extremely high.

We are not here today to glorify war. War is about pain, fear, hunger, loss and death.  Australia exists today in a large part due to the sacrifices of our servicemen and women, their families and friends.  If we are to take pride in our freedom and our Australian way of life, we must be prepared when the time comes to take a stand, to defend our birthright. The spirit of ANZAC continues today.  After, that is why we are here.  We see our service men and women taking part in the international campaign against terror in the Middle East and we have also seen the way that Australian have banded together to help victims of natural disasters, most recently in far north Queensland, and war torn countries. It is important that we remember the people who have given their lives whilst protecting the country they love and providing assistance to those less fortunate than ourselves, offshore and within Australia. 

For this reason we remember.