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Booing of the Welcome to Country has once again marred the solemnity of Melbourne’s Anzac Day dawn service, while people gathering at an RSL sub-branch in Melbourne’s north before dawn were confronted with anti-Anzac graffiti.
Tens of thousands of people gathered in the dark at the Shrine of Remembrance on Saturday morning to honour Australia’s servicemen and women.
But when Bunurong Elder Mark Brown commenced his Welcome to Country, boos could be heard from the crowd amassed in the Shrine’s forecourt. The booing continued throughout his speech and was picked up by microphones near the stage.
Many people at the Shrine clapped in response to Brown’s words, trying to oppose and drown out the booing noises.
A small group of men again booed when Victorian Governor Margaret Gardner acknowledged the Bunurong people of the eastern Kulin nation at the start of her speech.
Brown was also booed during the Welcome to Country at last year’s Anzac Day dawn service, with neo-Nazis among the hecklers.
Similar booing occurred on Saturday morning at Sydney’s dawn service at the Martin Place Cenotaph, where some crowd members displayed rowdy behaviour during an Acknowledgment of Country by Uncle Ray Minniecon.
In Melbourne’s north, those gathering in solemn remembrance of the Anzacs were left distressed after offensive, anti-veteran rhetoric was sprayed in red paint near Reservoir’s Cenotaph.
Graffiti including “kill the troops” and “f–k Anzacs” were sprayed on the walls of the Reservoir RSL overnight, before the commemorative service on Saturday morning.
Reservoir RSL sub-branch secretary Anton Cabunilas said the “disgraceful” graffiti was obviously intended to cause “hurt, division and distress to veterans” and their loved ones.
But instead, those who gathered for the dawn service were further united to ensure the spirit of Anzac Day lives on, he said.
“Those who commit such acts should remember they enjoy the freedoms of this country because generations of Australian service men and women answered the call to serve, often at great personal cost,” Cabunilas said.
Premier Jacinta Allan, who had earlier warned against booing, condemned the behaviour at the Shrine.
“Today we stand together united in that purpose of remembering the fallen, honouring their sacrifice. As well as those who came home and whose lives were changed forever,” she said.
“To break the stillness of Dawn Service is not just ugly behaviour towards our Aboriginal servicemen and women who defended this country — it disrespects everyone who fought for our freedoms.
“Politicising this sacred day is bastardry. I condemn it and so should every leader.”
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said the interjections were a disgrace.
He said Welcome to Country was an “innately respectful act” and many Indigenous Australians had also fought for their country.
“It’s utterly appropriate that their particular contribution be recognised,” Marles, who is also the minister for defence, told Sky News.
“This is a moment where we can just show respect for each other, and I think the booing that we’ve seen there is a disgrace.”
Opposition defence spokesman James Paterson said disturbing an Anzac Day service was an insult to Australia and its veterans.
“Whatever your views on a Welcome to Country, Anzac Day is our most sacred day,” he told Sky News.
“There are many other ways in a free country that you have an opportunity to express your views. The least you can do is stay away or not disrupt an Anzac Day service.”
New Zealand serviceman Steve Crawford sought out the Melbourne dawn service while on holidays, and called the booing behaviour “a shame”.
“I had never seen that before, and I really didn’t know what to make of it,” he said. “Everyone has their own opinions about things, but I thought it was a shame really. It takes the shine away from what the day is about.”
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Brittany Busch is a federal politics reporter for The Age and Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.From our partners
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