Bridgetown commemorates soldiers of past with Anzac Day march and commemorative service

Bridgetown residents honoured those who fought and died in war at their annual Anzac Day commemoration. The morning began with a march from the Bridgetown post office, with different service groups, returned soldiers and members of the community marching through Hampton Street before making their way to Memorial Park, where the RSL club held the service. The commemorative service acknowledged both the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who served during World War I, along with later conflicts, and the 25th anniversary of the International Force East Timor, with Bridgetown RSL president Peter Searles mentioning both in his president’s address. “So far, records show that more than 1000 Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders people served in the First World War,” he said. “Thankfully, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who served in the First World War and later conflicts now receive the recognition they always deserved.” He also spoke about the peacekeepers in East Timor, calling their operation “instrumental” in the nation’s independence and Australia’s largest peacekeeping mission. “We commemorate Australia’s service peacekeepers in the 1999 to 2013 operations in East Timor,” he said. “Australia’s involvement in East Timor was instrumental in that nation gaining independence.”