PRIME MINISTER
TRANSCRIPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER THE HON P J KEATING, MP
CIVIC RECEPTION, NOYERS-BOCAGE, NORMANDY, FRANCE
MONDAY 6 JUNE, 1994
Distinguished guests, citizens of Noyers-Bocage and veterans of the second
world war, from Australia.
I think we Australians feel proud to be among you and I'm delighted that so
many of us could be with you today. As I was moving around the crowd of
course, the faces all looked the same I didn't know who was Australian and
who was French. And, I think it is nice for the veterans to come back to meet
the community that they defended when they could never have met them, like
this, at the time. Because, it has to be real... one doesn't fight for something
and die for something which is ephemeral or imaginary and that which is real
is, of course, the kinship between Australia and France. So, for the families
who lost their sons and daughters, in some cases in this part of the
world, to hear the expression of heartfelt thanks from President Mitterrand
today is, I think, a very heartfelt, confident and reassuring thing.
When you see the village pictures at the front door you see how much
destruction there was here and how vicious and evil the Nazis were... and
entrenched and how hard they were to remove. But, the French understand
liberty and they understand democracy, as we Australians do; true
democracy, deep democracy. And, that is why we could never live, any of us,
under the tyranny of fascists like Hitler. So, these are lessons that we all
have learned expensively, some more expensively than others. This all
happened the year I was born. Fifty years later I want to remember and I
want all Australians to remember. And, Mr Mayor, we are in your debt when
your citizens remember, too.
So, let's agree that there is a great friendship between Australians and the
people of France. Indeed, between the people of France and all the people
who fought here. Let us agree that there is a kinship which extends across
countries, across borders and across -cultures. So, today, we again celebrate
our freedom and our friendship and faith in one another. And thank you for
being such gracious hosts to us, thank you for coming in such numbers to see
my countrymen. We're delighted to be among you, we thank you, Mr Mayor,
for the privilege extended to us and hope that D-Day will never be forgotten.
Mr Mayor, I have a picture for you of an Australian flier shot down here. Pilot
Officer Mason who was reburied, as I said, in 1992. And, so in 20 or 30 or
years from now someone will look at the picture and understand what it was
all about.
Thank you very much, indeed.
ends.