20 April 2006
ANZAC DAY REFLECTION - WHAT DO WE REMEMBER? WHAT DO WE LEARN?
The recent controversy around who might be allowed to participate in the annual Anzac Day march (April 25th) raises questions about the nature and purpose of war related memorial days.
The appropriateness of honouring the memory, bravery and sacrifice of those who served in the armed forces is not in question, even when the motives of those who sent them to fight and kill may be questionable.
However, the thinking that would deny the descendants of former enemy combatants the opportunity to participate in the annual commemoration deserves to be examined.
Is the emphasis of Anzac Day to be on affirming our national identity and celebrating military traditions, thereby risking making it easier for us to accept violence as a means of resolving disagreements?
Or is it more appropriate to place the emphasis on reconciliation between former enemies and on the futility and evils of war?
In a world still beset by conflicts around the globe, some initiated or supported by our own nation, it is perhaps appropriate to recall the words of the late pope John Paul II:-
"I proclaim that violence is evil, that violence is unacceptable as a solution to problems, that violence is unworthy of man - violence destroys what it claims to defend : the dignity, life and freedom of human beings"
The appropriateness of honouring the memory, bravery and sacrifice of those who served in the armed forces is not in question, even when the motives of those who sent them to fight and kill may be questionable.
However, the thinking that would deny the descendants of former enemy combatants the opportunity to participate in the annual commemoration deserves to be examined.
Is the emphasis of Anzac Day to be on affirming our national identity and celebrating military traditions, thereby risking making it easier for us to accept violence as a means of resolving disagreements?
Or is it more appropriate to place the emphasis on reconciliation between former enemies and on the futility and evils of war?
In a world still beset by conflicts around the globe, some initiated or supported by our own nation, it is perhaps appropriate to recall the words of the late pope John Paul II:-
"I proclaim that violence is evil, that violence is unacceptable as a solution to problems, that violence is unworthy of man - violence destroys what it claims to defend : the dignity, life and freedom of human beings"
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