‘A minute’s silence won’t help our suffering veterans. We need action’

Australia’s heroic veterans are being let down by our government after they made the “ultimate sacrifice” for our country.

OPINION

On Remembrance Day, Australians pause for a minute of silence to honour those who served our country.

This tradition, observed since 1919, is meant to encourage the everyday Australian to reflect on the sacrifices made by those in uniform.

Yet, in the century since, Australia – its government, and often its people – has drifted further than ever from genuinely recognising and respecting these sacrifices beyond the few minutes set aside each year.

An arduous journey with redeveloping the officers’ training unit at Scheyville National Park in NSW has given me a stark reminder of the true challenge of getting the government to acknowledge the needs of veterans.

On Remembrance Day, we pause for a minute of silence to honour our veterans. Picture: iStock

Taskforce Veteran has invested millions of dollars into preserving this historic yet neglected site, which holds 80 rooms that could serve as temporary housing for homeless veterans. The project aims to give new life to the historic site by creating a thriving community hub that educates the public about the sacrifices of veterans while celebrating their role in shaping our nation into what it is today.

Unfortunately, progress has been stymied by the federal and state heritage departments at every turn.

The cost of this inaction is inexcusable.

If the state and federal governments cannot recognise the importance of honouring a local legacy site, what do they think about the 500,000+ veterans around the country?

We know that male veteran suicide rates are 26 per cent higher than the national average for men and 107 per cent higher for women. We also know that almost 6000 veterans experience homelessness every year and that the veteran unemployment rate is significantly higher than the national average.

What our veterans need is support, connection and community. Facilities like our Scheyville Project are designed to do just that by creating a safe space for veterans, their families and the general community to come together and learn about the region’s rich military history.

This lack of support is particularly troubling in areas like Hawkesbury, where Scheyville is located, which has the 25th highest number of Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) clients in NSW. This is a community that knows the cost of service, yet continues to be overlooked.

These issues are a matter of life or death.

What does it say about our government that it refuses to support an initiative that will help our struggling veterans and preserve our military history?

Veterans are all too familiar with silence. We face the true cost of it every other day of the year from a government that fails to prioritise their welfare with the seriousness and urgency veterans deserve.

Brett Wild is the founder and chairman of Taskforce Veteran, which provides comprehensive support and education for ADF veterans and their families.

The 105th anniversary of the Armistice is a stark reminder of the cost of freedom – a cost that Australian veterans and their families paid in lives and lasting scars. The question we need to ask ourselves is: what does it mean to remember?

Honouring the past defines how we move forward as a nation. When we fail to honour our veterans properly, we lose part of our national identity and compromise the future of the next generation of servicemen and women.

How can we train and inspire tomorrow’s soldiers, sailors and airmen if we’re unwilling to recognise the profound sacrifices of those who served before them?

What veterans need is for politicians and voters alike to keep them in their minds, not just on Remembrance Day, but every day. Let’s stop acting as though our minute of silence is enough to care for the people who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

Without meaningful change, our government is choosing to leave veterans and their families in the shadows. The sacrifices of our servicemen and women deserve more than symbolic gestures – they deserve decisive action.

Brett Wild is the founder and chairman of Taskforce Veteran, which provides comprehensive support and education for ADF veterans and their families

Originally published as ‘A minute’s silence won’t help our suffering veterans. We need action’