Mr PEDERICK (Hammond) (11:08): I rise to support this motion by the member for Waite:

That this house—

(a) recognises that on 11 November we commemorate Remembrance Day;

(b) acknowledges the special significance of Remembrance Day marking the end of fighting on the Western Front;

(c) expresses its profound gratitude to all South Australian men and women who have served in the Australian Defence Force and died for our nation, as well as recognising the sacrifices made by their families; and

(d) acknowledges the important role of the RSL and other organisations who support veterans and the families of those who did not return.

Remembrance Day, as we know, is observed annually on 11 November to mark the anniversary of the Armistice that ended the fighting with Germany on the Western Front in World War I in 1918. At 11am of that day, hostilities ceased after more than four years of conflict. The day was originally called Armistice Day due to the Germans calling for an armistice in order to secure a peace settlement. Following the end of World War II, the United Kingdom proposed to change the name to Remembrance Day, so that men and women killed in both wars could be honoured.

Australian Defence Force personnel have been involved in numerous other wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations since the two Great Wars, and this day provides us all with the chance to commemorate those who have served and especially those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in defence of our nation. At 5am on 11 November, the Armistice was agreed on, and word was sent to the allied commanders that hostilities would be stopped on the entire front beginning at 11 o'clock on 11 November.

The signing of the Armistice resulted in the complete demilitarisation of the German army, the evacuation of German soldiers out of France and Belgium and the immediate release of allied prisoners of war and, in turn, civilians. Across the world, people rejoiced and celebrated the news. Despite it being late in the evening, school, fire station and church bells rang all around Australia, waking many to share the news that the war was finally over. Numerous armistices were signed in 1918. However, it was the Armistice of the 11^th of the 11^th that left a lasting global legacy, as it symbolised the war on the Western Front ending after four long years.

Alongside the excitement of the war being over, there was also a profound sense of loss and grief: 61,665 Australian soldiers made the ultimate sacrifice during World War I, with more than 156,000 wounded, gassed or taken prisoner. Of those who died, the remains of some 23,000 were never located. Whilst fighting stopped on 11 November, the peace treaty that formally ended World War I, the Treaty of Versailles, was signed only on 28 June 1919. This meant that exhausted troops had to wait another six months before they could return home to the country they fought to protect and to their loved ones.

For many soldiers, the horror they experienced on the battlefields never truly left them, even upon returning home, with both physical and mental scars having a lasting impact. On this 11 November, yesterday, we took the opportunity to reflect on the wars that have shaped the world and to commemorate those who tragically lost their lives protecting our nation. Hundreds of Remembrance Day services took place at RSL sub-branches right across our country, with the entire nation pausing at 11am to reflect.

We must acknowledge our RSLs for the vital work they do in holding these annual commemoration services and the work they do year round in supporting veterans and their families. Along with our returned and services leagues, there are many other ex-service organisations that deserve recognition for the work they do in assisting our veterans with the various aspects of post-service life.

I do want to acknowledge the many, many hundreds of thousands of men and women who served our great country over the years and the more than 103,000 who have made the ultimate sacrifice, but also those who have come home and spent a lifetime suffering with the ills of war and active service. You will not see it a lot of the time, unless you perhaps have a conversation with, I guess, a modern veteran to find out the horrors that they deal with over their lifetime since doing great service for our country, and, certainly, not just the mental anguish that our troops came home with, but those with lifelong physical injuries, and those who were gassed.

I have the utmost respect for people who are prepared to sign up for our Defence Force, as they do today, and who are all prepared to lay down their life for this great country. No greater gift can anyone give, in my mind. Certainly, Australians can be proud of the legacy that we have from serving right across the world, from the Boer War, World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the situation in Malaya, to then later on other conflicts like Afghanistan, and Iraq, and the peacekeeping efforts in Rwanda about 30 years ago that were upgraded to active service, and certainly the troops deployed to East Timor and the many other theatres that I have not mentioned here today, where our service men and women do such great work.

It is not just the work that they do overseas but the vital work that they do here on our home soil as well in support of the defence of our country. I would just like to reflect on members of my family who have served in World War I, World War II, in Korea, in Malaya, in Rwanda and Iraq—and just a special shout-out to my cousin Erin Pederick, who is currently serving in the Australian Defence Force.

It is interesting, in my role as shadow minister for veterans, occasionally you come across people who have done many rotations, especially in Afghanistan. I think I have told this story before about a returned soldier who had been rotated nine times. That is a huge rotation, especially for those who are trained at the highest level. At the end of our conversation, he was just happy that I took the time to discuss it with him and what happened. He told me in a broad sense what had happened to him overseas. He was very proud to have served, but that is a lot of rotations of a sequence, especially of our special forces soldiers who bore a lot of the brunt of the recent active service and that high turnover of rotations.

So I say to the Australian public: please respect our veterans, especially our modern-day ones, because it is easy for people to sit in their lounge rooms, in the comfort of their homes, or perhaps in a newsroom, and lay judgement before they know the facts of what actually happens, as I do not. I do not know what happens when you knock down a door and it might be the last thing you do on the battlefield. I do not know that. So please show some respect to those service men and women who serve our country, whether here or overseas, and the fact that they are willing to lay down their lives for you.

I commend the motion and fully support all those who have served, all those who are currently serving and wish them all the best in their futures. I know a lot of them thrive as they move into the future, and I know the support from the RSLs, the more than 300 organisations in this state, the more than 3,000 organisations federally, that support our people who have returned is aimed at doing their best to make sure that those people can have fruitful lives into the future. I commend the motion.