Remembrance Day Australia 2011

Australian servicemen remain engaged on active service in Afghanistan 

The names of eight Australian soldiers who died in Afghanistan in the past year have been added to the Australian War Memorial's Roll of Honour, as thousands gathered in Canberra to honour the nation's service men and women.

The names were added today to coincide with Remembrance Day ceremonies that mark 93 years since the Armistice which ended World War I.

More than 102,000 Australians have been killed while serving overseas in the past century, and their names are listed on the honour roll.

The eight names added are:

Private Matthew Lambert,

Sergeant Brett Wood,

Sergeant Todd Langley,

Corporal Richard Atkinson,

Sapper Jamie Larcombe,

Lance Corporal Andrew Jones,

Lieutenant Marcus Case and

Sapper Rowan Robinson.

It was too late to add the names of three soldiers killed last month in Afghanistan.

Photo: Two-year-old Ziggy Till, whose father, Sergeant Brett Till, was killed in Afghanistan in 2009, wears his father's medals at the Remembrance Day service in Canberra (ABC News: Penny McLintock)

Prime Minister Julia Gillard said Australia has been a key participant in recent wars and has paid a heavy price.

 

Prime Minister of Australia, the Hon. Ms Julia Gillard

"We are a good nation in an imperfect world. A people of peace so often called to war. Fighting other nations, but really fighting deeper foes: tyranny, injustice, persecution and greed. Never for national gain. Never for purposes other than what we judged to be right."

Victoria Cross for Australia recipient Corporal Mark Donaldson said it was a moving ceremony, particularly in light of the recent deaths in Afghanistan.

Trooper Mark Donaldson in 2009

"It reminds us all that that's why we have Remembrance Day, so we don't forget. If we don't keep remembering, if we don't keep the candle alight, then who will? It's good to know that we still have days like this, to take that moment out of our day when we're not thinking about ourselves, our business and making money, just to take a pause and a moment and remember those who went before us so we could have the future and the life that we do have today."