JOURNALIST:
How important is to carry on
PRIME MINISTER:
Well that is a question that is easily and readily answered by every Australian. It’s something that has permeated our life. It reminds us of all of the things we hold dear, encourage and mateship and love of country. Recklessness in the face of danger but also we should never forget that is was a terrible loss of young life. I mean the purpose of remembering these things is to thank the people for what they did but also to remember the sacrifice and there is nothing quite so hampering is wondering through a war cemetery and seeing all those headstones with ages like 18 and 19 and 20 written on them. It just reminds you of how terrible war is and the loss of lives and hopes and all of those things and makes me very humble to be in the company of a man whose one of the last 2 survivors of that campaign. Only two of them left now and they are in every sense of the word, a great Australian Treasure, both of them and it was a real honour to be in the presence of one of them today and to have him pass the [inaudible] the modern day bearers of the tradition.
But we all share the tradition. We have all benefited from it and we are all proud of it because its given us values that has kept this country going in difficult times as well as good times and we can only thank God and thank the original ANZAC’s that have what they did for our country.
[ends]