DARWIN, Northern Territory (CU)_This weekend many Ukrainians celebrated one of the most important holidays of the year, Orthodox Easter. They did so in the shadow of war, as Russian forces continue to attack the besieged city of Mariupol, in southern Ukraine. Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, the people of Australia and New Zealand are honouring Ukrainian troops on a special national anniversary.
On this day 107 years ago, thousands of troops from the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) were a part of a larger allied force which arrived on the Gallipoli peninsula in Ottoman Turkey, during World War One. It was ill-fated campaign that claimed the lives of over 130,000 armed personnel. Anzac Day was originally announced to commemorated the bloody battle, but now this national day honours Australian and New Zealand troops from all conflicts.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison attended a service in Darwin, on Monday, where he paid tribute to Ukrainian forces who are fighting Russia’s growing aggression. “On this particular day, as we honour those who fought for our liberty and freedom, we stand with the people of Ukraine who do the same thing at this very moment,” the Prime Minister said.
In neighbouring New Zealand, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern also commented on the ongoing geopolitical tensions in Eastern Europe, adding that the war in Ukraine shows peace cannot be taken for granted. “In New Zealand we may feel a great distance from this conflict, but we are all inextricably linked to what it represents,” she said in her Anzac Day address in Auckland.
Thousands of people gathered across the Trans-Tasman nations to mark the special occasion after public gatherings and commemorations were cancelled in the past two years on account of the pandemic. “The last few years have been really hard with COVID-19,” navy veteran Ray James, said at a service in Sydney’s Martin Place Cenotaph. “I’m really delighted to see the enormous crowds that have shown up today.”
