Empty space at dinner table

Russia Ukraine War reminder of sacrifices, horrors Anzac war veterans faced

Like many New Zealanders, every Anzac Day I wake in the early hours to participate in the dawn and then the civic services. This year I attended the services in Pauanui and Thames to remember the sacrifices made by our servicemen and women.

These sacrifices have been reinforced as we watch the carnage unfolding in Eastern Europe. The scenes of civilians trapped in a warzone is a sombre reminder of the all-encompassing nature of war and the horrors that it inflicts on everyone and everything.

Anzac Day is forever linked with World War I during which around 18,000 New Zealanders died. It’s difficult to put this number into perspective.

On a human-level for those left behind at home it was an empty space at the dinner table, a loved one’s life unfulfilled.

Even those who returned home came back changed from their experience.

They carried with them hidden wounds, the mental trauma of losing friends and a feeling of disorientation when returning to civilian life. Of course, many more New Zealanders have served since, in World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and conflicts in the Pacific and around the world.

As the MP for Coromandel, I am aware that 18 Parliamentarians served over the course of the First and Second World Wars.

During World War II, five of these MPS died while on active service, one of whom was the MP for Hauraki, Lt-colonel John Allen. Allen served as the commander of the 21st Battalion, he fought during the Battle for Crete, but ultimately was killed in action during the Libyan Campaign in November 1941. Lest We Forget.