Korean War commemoration day at Taree
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00:00We commence today's Korean Veterans Commemoration Day Ceremony with Marching on the Colours with our piper.
00:24On this occasion we pay tribute to the brave men and women who served in this conflict
00:29and I too would like to acknowledge the presence of two veterans among us,
00:33Mr Mack Austin from Foster and Mr John O'Donnell from Kalookalook.
00:38Your service and sacrifice are deeply appreciated and it is a privilege to have you here with us today.
00:44As we commemorate Korean Veterans Day on the 27th of July of each year,
00:49we remember the day in 1953 when the guns fell silent
00:53and two opposing armies lifted their pens and signed an armistice which ended three years of conflict in Korea.
01:00During that time, as Darcy has said, almost 17,000 Australians served in the Korean War.
01:07More than 1,200 were wounded and more than 350 never returned home, paying the ultimate sacrifice.
01:14The Korean War is often referred to as the Forgotten War
01:18because it occurred between two very high-profile conflicts, World War II and the Vietnam War.
01:24What a great honour and privilege it is for us to be here at this memorial service
01:32marking the 71st anniversary of the Korean War Armistice.
01:39When the Korean War, I was five years old, the Korean War broke out,
01:46and here I am 74 years old, I'm 79 years old now,
01:52standing here entirely in New South Wales at this memorial service for all those who served during that war.
02:02However, I would not be here if it wasn't for the selfless acts of all those brave men and women
02:12who fought good battles during the war to protect freedom against communist aggressions.
02:21For that, I want to give all my personal special thanks and heartfelt gratitude,
02:30especially to the two Korean War veterans here with us today, Mr. Matt Austin and John O'Donnell.
02:42Matt, John, thank you, really thank you very much.