Today is Anzac Day in Australia and New Zealand; a day supposedly intended for honouring the
ANZAC soldiers that fought in the world wars, and more broadly to honour all Australian soldiers who have died for their country in any war. Yet, in our haste to remember them, we seem to have forgotten the principles and liberties which those soldiers fought and died to preserve.
Two weeks ago, Australian supermarket chain Woolworths was
reprimanded by government for using the word "Anzac" in a seasonal advertisement, under an archaic law from 1920 which provides the Minister for Veterans' Affairs sole discretion over acceptable use of that sacred word. I could go into various reasons why the appointment of that ministerial post is undemocratic, and therefore a vague (at best) reflection on the will of the Australian people, but the point I have to make is more broad than that.
Australian soldiers fighting in World War II and the Vietnamese War were trying to protect Australian interests from Japanese militarism and Vietnamese communism, respectively. They opposed the influence of authoritarianism on Australian society, and many gave their lives to ensure the liberties we hold dear could be taken for granted in years to come. What a contrast total government control over the use of a single word, chipping away at our freedom of speech, makes against that goal.
I think Australia needs to ask itself the following question: Do we really want to honour the sacrifices of the soldiers who died for our liberties by restricting those same liberties in their name? If the answer is yes, then I fear this country was not worth dying for. If it is no, then scrap this ridiculous law and let Woolworths run its advertising campaign. If Australians truly disapprove of it, they will boycott Woolworths and it will learn its lesson without government interference.