Wednesday, 31 May 2023

Statements on tabled papers and petitions

Department of Treasury and Finance

Budget papers 2023–24

Lee TARLAMIS (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (17:09): I rise to speak on the budget papers 2023–24, specifically in relation to the veterans portfolio, in acknowledging the recent inauguration of the Lemnos Remembrance Trail on the northern Aegean island of Lemnos. Members may be aware that the Governor-General of Australia His Excellency the Honourable David Hurley recently attended the annual commemorative service on Lemnos held this year on 3 May. The service is held to honour all those who served on Lemnos during the Gallipoli campaign. I have attended this service in previous years, as have many other members and former members of the Victorian Parliament.

Lemnos played an important part in the Gallipoli campaign as an advanced base. It was the place where thousands of soldiers came before the landings at Gallipoli and where they returned for rest and recuperation, the place where major medical services were established, including Australian nurses, and the place where the soldiers returned after the evacuation of Gallipoli. It is also the location of the graves of 148 Australians who remain on the island in its military cemeteries. It is an important place of remembrance of the service of many Victorians who served in the campaign. Box Hill born nurse Clarice Daley served there; Private Ted Tozer from Blackburn, a relative of mine, served there; and Albert Park electrician Corporal George Knight is buried there, as is Oakleigh’s William Withers.

The Australian Governor-General joined the President of the Hellenic Republic Katerina Sakellaropoulou at the service. This was the first time that the Australian Governor-General has come to Lemnos and that both of these office-holders have attended these services. Also present were many other dignitaries, including the Australian ambassador to Greece Arthur Spyrou, the Hellenic deputy defence minister Nikolaos Hardalias, the prefect of the North Aegean Mr Konstantinos Moutzouris and the mayor of Lemnos Dimitrios Marinakis.

After the service at East Mudros cemetery, where over 900 Allied service personnel are buried, including 98 Australians, the dignitaries moved to the Australian Pier and its memorial for the inauguration of the Lemnos Remembrance Trail. Members may be aware that the Victorian government supported the installation of the memorial on Lemnos in 2018, following a submission by the Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee, and I participated in the official unveiling. The Australian Pier had been identified through the research of historian Jim Claven, who was also secretary of the committee. It was here that the first Australian troops came ashore on Lemnos in March 1915, some of them erecting the pier, enabling the landing of medical equipment for the first Australian stationary hospital and the first Australian medical facility to be established on the island. One of the medical officers who served there would after the war become Premier of Victoria – Kyneton-born Major Stanley Argyle. It was during the inauguration of the memorial in 2018 that the committee and the regional authorities committed to the creation of the heritage trail on Lemnos, identifying and linking sites on the island connected to the Gallipoli campaign. This proposal was later taken up by the Australian government as the Lemnos Remembrance Trail, with Jim Claven engaged as the historical consultant in the development of the concept.

The Australian Governor-General acknowledged the work of the committee, along with the prefecture of the North Aegean in instigating this project. How appropriate then that the new trail was commenced with a ground-breaking ceremony by the Australian Governor-General and the Hellenic President at the site of the Australian Pier memorial. As the Australian veterans’ affairs minister the Honourable Matt Keogh MP said:

The … Trail will allow travellers to visit key sites of significance, and a website will be developed to tell the Australian story on Lemnos for those unable to visit in person.

When completed, more than a dozen significant sites on Lemnos will be publicly accessible, giving visitors’ insight into the experiences of the soldiers and medical staff on the island.

In inaugurating the trail, the Australian Governor-General said that the trail:

… as a memorial and as a means of education … will be a place to reflect on the service and losses that were experienced during the Gallipoli Campaign …

It will also serve as a bridge to understanding and appreciating the service of our modern veterans and men and women in uniform.

The mayor of Lemnos spoke of the new trail as an open museum that will bring to life the history of the Anzacs of Lemnos and offer every visitor a unique experience using state-of-the-art technology.

I want to thank the Australian government for taking on this important initiative and the Australian Governor-General for inaugurating the trail, which will honour the service of all Australians, including many Victorians and their descendants who served on Lemnos during the Gallipoli campaign of 1915–16. I would also like to acknowledge Mr Jim Claven, who has been a tireless advocate for building awareness of the role of Lemnos in the Australian Anzac story through his research, writing and presentations over many years. As a trained historian, communication professional and secretary of the committee, Jim has been an excellent partner for me and the other members of the Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee.

I would also like to acknowledge the volunteer work of the other members of the committee: vice-president Christina Despoteris OAM; treasurer Arlene Bennett; executive members Terry Kanelos OAM, Paul Sougleris, Malcolm McDonald, Deb Stewart and Vicki Kyritsis; as well as our committee patrons Colonel, retired, Jan McCarthy ARRC and Lambis Englezos AM. Without the tireless work of volunteers like these in our community, such great achievements as the inauguration of this trail would be a long sought after dream.