BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: The Australian High Commission in Brunei Darussalam held a dawn service to commemorate Anzac (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) Day at the Brunei-Australia Memorial at Muara Beach on Saturday (April 25), to honour the service of Australians and New Zealanders in wars, conflicts, peacekeeping and humanitarian operations.
Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Defence II Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Rtd) Dato Paduka Seri Awang Mohd Yussof attended the event alongside senior member of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces, members of the diplomatic community, military officials and Australians and New Zealanders in Brunei Darussalam. Australian High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam Michael Hoy reflected on the enduring values of service, sacrifice and cooperation that underpin Anzac Day.
“On Anzac Day it is heartening to see so many nations gathered together to remember our past and commit to building a safer world where we can prosper side by side,” the Australian high commissioner said. “In uncertain times, the values that bind us are far greater than our differences, and we should choose cooperation over competition.”
Meanwhile, Japanese Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam Kikuta Yutaka shared, “In the recent international arena, growing divisions and instability are becoming increasingly evident, and there is also a rise in cases where innocent people fall victim to the use of force.”
He also expressed, “I am convinced that what we need now is not an escalation of hatred but rather to deepen mutual understanding and continue to make every effort to coexist while respecting differing viewpoints. The fact that I was invited once again to this ceremony today with the opportunity to speak truly embodies the spirit of Brunei Darussalam, the ‘Abode of Peace’. Standing here before the Brunei-Australia Memorial on Pantai Muara, I would like to reiterate the words engraved on the memorial stone in Labuan, ‘Peace is the best’.
Ambassador of Turkiye to Brunei Darussalam Professor Dr Hamit Ersoy also delivered a message during the ceremony. Meanwhile, Gabriel O’Flaherty, a descendant of Private Alan Telford Dougherty, who fought in the First World War, delivered an inspiring account of his great-grandfather’s story.
Anzac Day commemorates the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces, in the First World War Gallipoli Campaign in 1915. – Borneo Bulletin/ANN
