THE morning darkness and drizzling rain added to the somber occasion of the dawn service held at the Boyup Brook War Memorial.
Under a brighter sky the morning parade was led by a vintage Morris Minor 1000, the flag bearer, Patrick Reilly and piper, Peter Dearden.
President of the RSL, Colin Hales’ address led the crowd through the major battles over time that Australian armed forces have been involved in.
Boyup Brook’s Citizen of the Year, Ginny Mitchell’s address focused on the contributions made by the Aborigines to the war efforts and the consequent injustices and lack of acknowledgement of their involvement.
The Aborigines were taken to the Boer War as horse handlers and trackers. While they were good at what they did their names did not appear on any shipping manifest and there were even groups that were left behind.
Many were rejected when they tried to enlist and then arrested for moving from their homelands. Many had to hide their aboriginality to even sign up.
Others went off to war only to come home to find their homelands divided up for war settlement blocks for returned soldiers – but not for them.
From a 1942 Daily News article Ginny retold the story of how a Dutch plane, which had been bombed by the Japanese, crash landed near Broome. An Aboriginal man by the name of Jerrie Dardan of the Bardi tribe, saved most of the survivors by giving them his meager rations and water.
After guiding them to permanent water Jerrie made all speed to a native mission 40 miles away and joined in the rescue party which brought all the survivors to safety. Both the Dutch authorities and the West Australian Government rewarded him for what he did.
This story brought back many memories for a Boyup Brook person whose mother’s first husband died from his injuries in this very accident.
“It is disappointing and a real tragedy that all governments have been neglectful in addressing the war effort made by Aborigines earlier and leaving the Aborigines to cope and fend for themselves,” Ginny said.
To complete the ceremony bush poet Ron Evans recited The Poem of Remembrance and the choir sang Going Home.
Afterwards a simple wreath laying ceremony was held at the Upper Blackwood Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital.
