To mark the sacrifices of the thousands of Australians who served in the conflict, the Consulate Generals of the Republic of Korea in Sydney and Melbourne are running initiatives to “convey gratitude” on behalf of their country.
Run in collaboration with the Korean Cultural Centre Australia and ANZAC Memorial, the ‘Lest Korea Forget’ initiative will see the portraits of eight soldiers feature on the facades of light rail trains in Sydney until July 26.
At the same time, a tram decorated with the portraits of Australian soldiers and a message will travel through the Melbourne city centre.
Sojeong Park, Director of the Korean Cultural Centre Australia says
“I hope the Korean and Australian people remember the spirit of sacrifice shown by Australian Veterans of the Korean War, so we prepared this event to honor them.”
Korean War veteran Rear Admiral Ian Crawford told SBS Korean this country should be proud of the actions taken by Australians during the Korean War.
"The important message for future generations is - always show that we're ready to go. And the Korean War proved that about the fighting ability, especially the Army, I would say that. The endurance, the leadership and the military skills of our people were demonstrated and were a source of great pride to all Australians."
And he says while Australians may have difficulty remembering the Korean War - in South Korea, Australian soldiers are far from forgotten - and their legacy lives on.
“Australians would say 'what was the Korean war?', the Koreans say thank you for what you did. So it’s (Korea is) a dynamic, progressive, exciting society and an appreciative society. And they share a lot of our ways of doing things "
Bradley Manera, Senior curator and historian at the NSW Anzac Memorial, says
“The war goes on but for Australian veterans they remember that period of 1950 to 1953 and they visit (Korea) frequently the graves of fallen Australian who lie in Korean soil beautifully tended in gardens at the United Nations memorial cemetery at Pusan. Lest we forget”
An online talk with Bradley Manera and Korean War veteran Rear Admiral Ian Crawford to rediscover the meaning of the Korean War as a 'War to Remember Together' will be available to view on the Korean Cultural Centre (KCC) YouTube page from June 30, while a special screening the documentary ‘Passage to Pusan’ will be presented via the KCC’s YouTube page until June 30.
From 1950 to 1953, Australia dispatched over 17,000 troops to the Korean War, of which 340 were killed and over 1,216 wounded.
