Anzac Day Ceremonies: The Sacred And The Profane
Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday April 28, 2005
The comments by Andrew Dalton (Letters, April 26) concerning the Anzac dawn service at Roseville do require a reply. Our recollection of events leading to the annual dawn service goes back to Anzac Day 1923 when the Reverend Arthur Ernest White, previously a padre to the 44th Battalion, 1st AIF, conducted a service near Albany (Western Australia). He gave a short address on the significance of Anzac and concluded with a prayer which ended with the words: "As the sun rises and as it goeth down, we will remember them."
Our chaplains in the army, navy and air force have always held to the above sentiments when involved with Anzac Day, and at Roseville last Monday there was no departure. We make no apology for the singing of God Save the Queen as a hymn which related directly to the era of 90 years ago and on to World War II. The women's vocal orchestra group who so ably led our singing were admired for their fine rendition of all the hymns and our national anthem. Likewise the convener of the commemoration service and my executive were given many congratulatory comments about the service.Michael Askey President, Roseville RSL Sub-branch, Roseville Despite what we are told about Gallipoli being regarded as a sacred site by many Australians and New Zealanders, obviously they have no understanding of the meaning of "sacred". You don't defile what is believed to be sacred. As a concerned Australian, I deplore the desecration of this site by my fellow Australians who were able to visit it and leave behind such a mountain of detritus ("Gallipoli the rock gig - what a load of rubbish", Herald, April 27). We should hang our heads in shame. Those men who died there 90 years ago did not deserve this. Anne Titchmarsh Cremorne Now that Anzac Day has passed, it should be acknowledged that those who opposed the road widening at Anzac Cove were right - not for the reasons given, but because it gave easier access to thousands of drunken yobbos who desecrated the memorials.It may become necessary for the Government to work more closely with the Turkish authorities and possibly ban the consumption of alcohol near the cemeteries and ban overnight camping in the area if it is to remain a memorial to the fallen.H. Hirschhorn BallinaThe fuss about rubbish left by the crowd after the ceremony at Anzac Cove is a joke. Any large crowd in any part of the world leaves rubbish - even if bins are provided. Compared with the harbour shore at Kirribilli after the fireworks at New Year or Australia Day celebrations it is minor. Prompt clean-up is the answer. At Kirribilli the mess is all gone by 11am. North Sydney Council does a great job. This is another case of media beat-up.Grahame Francis Forster Our Prime Minister has trashed everything from the Westminster system to aid for carers, so of course he supports the Gallipoli polluters.Geoff Telfer Cordeaux Heights I notice when I have attended Opera in the Park or the occasional Mozart concert in the Domain, when we leave there is no rubbish left by patrons, even though we are there for hours on rugs consuming lots of food. Perhaps at Anzac Cove we could have classical music instead of rock played to help solve the appalling amount of rubbish left by Australians.Robyn Hansen Pennant HillsLitter left at Anzac Cove? If we're celebrating AIF traditions, whatever happened to the good old military emu bob?Chris Horn Summer HillYour editorial "Changing tunes of Anzac Day" is so old hat (Herald, April 27). The next generation feeds on music, as ours did on bell-bottom trousers and love-ins, so the organisers are to be commended for sexing up an old theme. Alastair Browne Cromer HeightsIf silence is still out of fashion at Gallipoli next year, maybe the Veterans Affairs, Minister De-Anne Kelly, could consider such songs as Imagine by John Lennon. She might say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one.Wendy Stephen Mosman
© 2005 Sydney Morning Herald
