24 April 2014
AUSTRALIANS AND NEW ZEALANDERS IN SOLOMON ISLANDS COMMEMORATING 99th ANZAC DAY
Each year on 25 April, Australians and New Zealanders gather to remember the servicemen and women who have served their nation in times of war, in conflicts or peacekeeping operations.
The New Zealand and Australian High Commissions in Solomon Islands are holding a dawn service at the Cenotaph, near Central Police Station, at 5.40am on Friday morning.
The New Zealand and Australian High Commissions are encouraging everyone to attend the Anzac Day service at the Cenotaph. New Zealand and Australia alternate hosting the event; New Zealand is hosting this year’s commemoration. This year a catafalque party from the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra will also support the commemoration in Honiara.
“On 25 April 1915, ninety-nine years ago, thousands of Australians and New Zealanders landed on the shores of Gallipoli, beginning a hard-fought campaign that lasted eight months,” said Australian High Commissioner Andrew Byrne.
“More than 8,700 lost their lives during the Gallipoli campaign, with more than 2,000 casualties on the first day alone,” he said.
New Zealand High Commissioner Marion Crawshaw said “Anzac Day goes beyond the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in 1915. It is the day on which we remember New Zealanders and Australians who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations. The spirit of Anzac, with its human qualities of courage, mateship, and sacrifice, continues to have meaning and relevance today.”
Australians and New Zealanders are also encouraged to take part in sharing the Anzac Spirit on the Anzac Centenary Facebook page.