Tweed Heads & Coolangatta RSL ANZAC Day service cancelled
A major RSL club boss has blamed snap border closures as part of the reason for the decision to cancel its ANZAC Day service this year.
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A major RSL club boss has blamed snap border closures as part of the reason for the decision to cancel its ANZAC Day service this year.
Tweed Heads & Coolangatta RSL president John Griffin says members and the public are ‘disappointed’ that the club has decided not to hold the popular service, which typically attracts up to 8000 people to Chris Cunningham Park next to Twin Towns Services Club.
But Dr Griffin said there were multiple impediments, including complying with COVIDSafe rules and unpredictable border closures.
He said despite Anzac Day services given the green light by the Queensland and NSW governments to go ahead, they would not be like pre-COVID ceremonies.
“Public ANZAC Day services will be highly restricted, and in many cases, ticketed events, to ensure venue capacities are adhered to,” he said.
“Our sub-branch has the unique problem of being part of RSL Queensland, but residing in New South Wales. We have to try and conform to not one but two sets of regulations that are, at times, inconsistent.
“If we went ahead, we would be required to collect the names and contact details of every participant and attendee as this has been stipulated in the NSW Regulations for ANZAC Day 2021.
“This would be impossible to achieve in Chris Cunningham Park and well beyond the financial and physical resources of our Sub-Branch.
“As those who reside on or near the Qld/NSW border have learned from the past 11 or so months, there is always the possibility of sudden border closures when they’re least expected.
“This would have a massive impact on the event, especially if it happened just a few days out from ANZAC Day.”
Dr Griffin also said that more than 80 percent of Tweed Heads & Coolangatta RSL Sub-Branch members are over 70 years of age ‘and every effort must be made to protect them’.
He encouraged members of the sub-branch and local community to commemorate ANZAC Day in their homes this year, standing in their driveways and on balconies like they did in last year’s ‘Light Up the Dawn’ initiative.
The Currumbin RSL has also cancelled the traditional dawn beach service at Elephant Rock - which attracts around 20,000 people - because of difficulties complying with COVID regulations.
Originally published as Tweed Heads & Coolangatta RSL ANZAC Day service cancelled
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