Good to see that the ANZAC bridge in Sydney, which flies both flags, will soon have statues of both Australian and NZ soldiers. I regularly drive over the bridge and have often wondered why there's no NZ soldier alongside the statue of the digger.This will soon be fixed as Clark's visit with Morris Iemma included an announcement that a new statue has been commissioned from the sculptor who crafted the existing statue.
3 comments:
Do all Gallipoli monuments in NZ have Australian figures? And remember, during the Great War, the NZ forces were technically part of British forces - so I guess we should have British soldiers on all WW1 memorial?!
I actually think this is something that Helen Clark has done a very good job of - remembering and recognising the sacrifice of 'our boys' during major conflicts. I was at the dedication of the NZ Memorial in Hyde Park in London last year and have to say it was really moving experience. I was also really pleased to see the plans for the completio of the Memorial Park in Wellington announced earlier this year. About time!
Anon, I think the ANZAC tradition, despite the points you make, is a trans-Tasman one which justifies a NZ monument. Interestingly, I'm reading FitzSimons' book on the Kakoda and there's little mention of the NZ decision to stay in Europe rather than support Australia in the South Pacific.
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