ANZAC Day 2026

ANZAC Day. Respect to everyone who is remembering their loved ones today.

Sadly, ANZAC Day is also one of two annual flashpoints (along with Australia Day) which remind us that we still live in a British colony. For there are the worthy war dead, those who are remembered in the official mourning of the nation, and there are the unworthy war dead. The unworthy war dead are the 64,000 Aboriginal people who died fighting the British when they invaded our country. The unworthy war dead are also the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who fought for Australia in its wars against other nations.

Notwithstanding the booing that accompanies Aboriginal people who dare to participate in ANZAC ceremonies, most politicians and public officials now defend the right of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service people to be recognised and respected in official ANZAC commemorations. This is a great step forward. Still, their words ring a litte hollow when many of the families of these service people still await the entitlements and compensations made available to non-Aboriginal service families.

Then there is the continuing refusal to officially commemorate those who died in frontier conflicts on Australian soil. The Australian War Memorial continues to see the death of those who defended this country against the British as unworthy of its attention. And whilst every Australian town contains a memorial to those who died in the Australian wars against other nations, the memorials to blakfellas who died in our frontier conflicts can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

As a man whose forebears served in all these conflicts, I long for the day when we can commemorate and respect all our war dead equally.

Garry Worete Deverell

April 25, 2026