Page 2233 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 6 June 1990
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However, while that event was seen as a major defeat for the Allied cause at that time, today is the forty-sixth anniversary of a triumph - the return of the British and other Allied forces to continental Europe to liberate it from the control of a regime that is now almost universally acknowledged as having been run by a dictator who had no concern for human rights and who inflicted many gross inhumanities on the people of Europe, especially Jewish people and minority groups of that continent.
Operation Overlord, as it was named, which is now generally referred to as D-day, saw 156,000 men landed on the beaches of Normandy - 83,000 British and Canadian troops on the eastern beaches and 73,000 Americans on the western beaches. These landings were fully supported by the Allied air forces which effectively and efficiently dealt with the movement of German reserves in an attempt to halt this invasion, or return to Europe. It is also now known that a major deception plan executed by the Allies convinced Hitler that the return to Europe of Allied troops on that day was just a minor invasion. This was one of the many successes of the so-called secret war that was waged by the Allies during that period.
Mr Speaker, when referring to D-day, one must not forget also the efforts of the many members of the French resistance, or maquis, and their Allied advisers, one of whom was, of course, Australia's Nancy Wake, or the "White Mouse", as she was referred to by the German forces. These groups waged their own war against an invading force and listened intently to the BBC radio service which sent coded messages to announce to them that the force from England was on its way.
It was an important day for the people of Europe who had suffered under the excesses of the Third Reich. It is appropriate on this day to remember those servicemen, servicewomen and civilians who took part in this event, especially those who paid the supreme sacrifice or those who were injured in the events of that day and the days that followed leading up to the capitulation of the Third Reich.
However, never let it be said that such a recollection seeks to glorify war; rather, it reminds us that human beings, for some reason, have insisted on seeking to resolve their differences by inflicting their will on others by force of arms. However, history also tells us that, when a dictatorship seeks to impose its will on others, there comes a time when force of arms is necessary to return society to a period of relative stability and sanity.
It is unfortunate that only now have changes taken place in Europe to remove the yoke of oppression from people who were not given the sort of freedom we enjoy now following the end of the war in 1945. Let us also hope that the people of China, particularly those students who joined us
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