Thursday, August 18, 2011

Australia Vietnam Veterans Day: Vietnam veterans remembered


“After the Welcome Home March in Sydney in October 1987, the Federal Government, under Prime Minister Bob Hawke, decreed this day would be set aside and be known as Vietnam Veterans Day, a day that everyone, regardless of whether they were service persons or not, could pause and remember not only those very gallant men of D Coy 6 RAR but also the 521 young people who paid the supreme price, and lost their lives in the search for freedom,” Mr Smith said.

“We will pause to remember the tragic losses of our allies, especially the 51 New Zealanders, 58,000 Americans and also the Vietnamese. The Vietnamese losses were in the vicinity of one million combat-killed and four million civilians with about one million suffering from exposure to Agent Orange today.”

The Source

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