Building a safer Victoria

Corrections Victoria launches a major recruitment campaign for prison officers from multicultural backgrounds

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• DHANYA SAMUEL

Amajor recruitment initiative, 'Find the Potential Wihtin' was launched by Corrections V ictor ia recently to engage more tlrnn 750 prison officers and community corrections officers from multiculmral and di verse backgroun ds.

Victoria prides itself on having a good correctional system, but is on the threshold of a major expans ion to build an exceptional sys tem and thereby make the state the safest in tl1e country. This new recruitment campaign, \Vhich was launched in late June , encourages people of cul turally and linguiscicaUy d iverse backgrounds to come and work together to build a safer Victoria.

Corrections Victoria Commissioner, Jan Shuard, s aid chat this recruim1enc campaign wiU positively affect tl1e organ isation as it helps to bring together a diverse breadth of ins igh t and Life experience. It i s hoped th is wiU enab le the prison workp lace co become more perceptive and open in its tmderst,mding of the community.

This campaign offers excellent employment opportunities and posicive working conditions in a compassionate and su pportive environmenL There are a lot of myths and preconceived nocions among the public when ic comes to prisons and correctional facilities Ms Sim ard hopes that this recmitment campaign will enabl e the commo n man co unde rstand and appreciate the positive, engaging and rehabilitative nan.ire of Corrections V iccor ia.

The prison officers and community corrections officers p lay a vital role in safeguarding ilie community. " These officers can contribme positive ly co the criminal justice system of Victoria tl1ereby ensuring safety and security for all sectio ns of the commmiity a like," ~fs Simard said.

Commissioner Jan Shuard stressed the fact that the r acionale behind iliis recr uitment drive is an expansion of Victoria's prison systems, and is noc related to any specifi c crimes or cr ime trends, raciaJ or culmra l. The need of the hour is a berrer and more positive pri son environment a lo ng with providing more opportunities co tbe large Vicrorian community.

So, what do you need to become a prison officer? A good command over tl1e English l anguage, excellent comrnurucacion and interperso nal skills and an inherent ability to relate and work wi th people belonging to diverse backgrounds

Corrections Victoria is loo king out for a broad range of candidates from mulcid.isciplinary educational and work backgroun ds. This is a w ay of transferr:ing your existing skills a nd experiences to a more pos icive, challenging and enrichin g work environment.

No pre-requisite training is req Liired for candidates to apply for these roles. All the necessary professional training and development, access to employee assistance programmes and recreation facilities will be provided after candidate selection.

Brisbane celebrated Indian Independence Day with flair and style

Above: Minister for Aboriginal and Torre s Strait I slander and Multicultural Affairs Glen Elmes; Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk; Honorary Consul of India for Queensland, Arehano Singh; and other important guests

Dresssed in traditional Indian attire, be it kmtas, lehengt1s or saris, Indian origin people bustled through Roma Street tra in station, or made a dash from their cars, to make it on time for the ce lebrations of India's 68rl1 Independence Day The India Day Fair, organised by rl1e Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) on 10 August at the Roma Street Parklands, was an opportunity to reminisce and savour all things Indian from morning until late evening Celebrations were kickstarted with a parade of various associations representing their states and cultures of India o n a warm Sunday morning. T h ere were the Kasbmir.i Pandits, Tamil, Punjab, Goan, Maharashtra Mandal, Kannada Sangha, Telugu to name a few and, for the first time, representat ives from the newly fo rm ed state o f Telengana.

Australian and Indian di gnitaries attended the Fa.ir, including Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, Glen Elmes, Jvlin ister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and

Multicul tural Affairs and Archana Singh, Honorary Consul of lndia for Queensland. The Australian and Indian flags \Vere hoisted by Glen Elmes and Archana Singh res pectivel y, which was followed b y the national anthems of each of t he countries' to mark their respect for one another.

Honorar y Consul of India for Queensland, Archana Singh paid tribute to 1.4 milli.on British Indians who lost their lives during Wor ld War I. She continued, "India's commrnury ensures dive rsi ty, and today we celebrate India and her contributions".

Keeping true to the spirit of the Indian culture, Lord Mayor Graham Quirk was dressed in a knrta. Speaking at the o pening ce remony of the India Da y fa.ir, h e emphasised his fo ndnes s for the lndian comm uni ty and cul ture.

Echoin g similnr sentiments, Glen Elmes said, "There is a spirit of fi.m, eJ{travaganza, saris and colours. I look forward to coming to all. the future (Indian) even ts.

Thank you for t oday's inv ite".

As d1e crowd h t m1med along to rl1e familiar a.mes of Vt111de Niatra m and AJIB J11ere Jl'atat1 ke logo11, which were s ung beautiful1y, a few were teary eyed as they were rran spo rred back to Indian soil

Foll.owing the ope1ung ceremony, different age groups, both ymmg and old, showcased their singing and dancing talent and enthus iasm from all corners of lndi'l. Traditional Bharathnatyan1, Ptmjab folklore, a nd Bo llywood performances kept rl1e crowd enrl1ra1led. There was non-stop cheering and dancing.

" Today is a great combination of ancient Indian rici1 culmre leaping in a modern age democracy," Anthony Lin , Direcror of the Ethnic CommLUUties C~mncil of Que ensl and , to ld Tndia11 Li11k at d1e India Day Fa.ir.

Indian food is synonymo u s with a ny Indian event, and tlus Fair was no excep ti on. Stalls of different cLiisines were lined up with finge r licking curries and rice, ci1aat, autl1entic So uth 1ndian delicacies and a stall. w ith interesting tangy and sweet Indian Aavoured juicesAaa111 Ra,, 1111/i, Jamun, K,1ebha aa111 a nd als o Ayurvedic stalls.

A sple ndid display o f fireworks at dLisk concluded the ]ndia Day Fair celebrations, and left us all eagerly awaiting next year's fair.

Major General

Vikram Madan is quick to couuter any claims that he is in a "bat tle" or "light" with Anzac authorities

As a hardcore army man, he knows better than to use s uch te rm s. So how would be describe bis ongoing 'engagement' w ith the South Australian Anzac Day Committee?

'1t's a humble request, really," he says with Gandhian simplici ty. "A request to allow lnc:Lian vetera n s to participate iu tl1e annual Auzac Day parade, ill tl1e light of our huge contributions in born World Wars in general, and at Gallipoli in particular".

To Australians, Anzac Day is a highly significant day in their calendar. The Anzac spirit is part of their psyche and d1ey treasure it dearly, not easily sharing i t with those who don't have a valid or strong claim. This i s understandab le, and tndeed, this is the way a proud community should upho ld its trac:Litional values. Perhaps it is in this light that the South Australian Anzac Day Com mittee decided co decline a request from the SA Indian Defence C lub co join the Anza c Day march at this year's parade, or at next year's 100'" anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign.

And yer, Jvfadan's cause i s o n e that will bring due recognition to his fellow wa rriors and respect for the thousands of soldiers who fought bes id e Australian Diggers at Gallipoli, and even paid the ultimate sacrifice. Such reco!,>nition, Madan points out, wi ll eventual ly flmv on to strengthen the bonds between lndia and Australia at d1e national level, and at the local level, help the growing Indian community to be seeu as part of Team Australia

It seems that those who opposed d1e Club's request have suggested chat the Indian veterans should march in the 'ne.,r of kin' category, despite the fact that they are ex -servicemen with proud records of soldiering under their belt, a nd of being allies of Austral ian fo rces in both World Wars.

The 'next of kiu' suggestion must surely rankle w ith Vikram Madan, who gave 41 years of his l ife to the Indian Army. In his career he saw action in the Bangladesh war, in Sri Lanka, a nd d u ring the insurgency operations in lnc:Lia 's north -east. He served 11 years in high altin1de postings including Kargil at the IndiaPakistan bord er, and commanded a Di v is.ion in Punjab/J &K, fighting militancy. He was d ecorated twice b y the President of India (2000 and 2006), with the Vishisht Seva Medal, a decoration awarded to recogni se ·'distinguished service o f an exceptional order".

" The J\rmy life is the only life I have known, ever since m y teens".

All he wants iu his retirement now is co be able to pay an Anzac tribute to his forebears, ill the land that he now calls home.

Indian veterans in NS\'{~ Victoria and \YlA have for a few years now marched in d1e annual Anzac Day parades as allied renirned servicemen. In Sydney, Inc:Lian participation was welcomed by the RSL ill 2007, and fo r the past two years, there have been not one, but two contingents marching (Sikh Regiments and lnc:Lian Defence Force s). At die Perth parade, three Indian conttngents cook part d1is year (l,'1/A Sikh Band, Sikh Ex -Serv icemen and Indian Ex -Servi cemen's Association)

The Melbourne parade has a small Indian participation too

The SA lnc:Lian Defence Club, made up of 15 former lnc:Lian officers who have migrated and settled in the state, seeks th e same privilege and honour.

" There are many lndian people living in SA and they too want to sh ow their commitment to d1e Anzac Day trac:Lition," says Vikram Madan. "Of course we don't want to take anything away from the Australian or New Zealand forces, even though our cas u alties we re considerably more than New Zealand's".

Th ere is a sentimental inrerest as well, l\.fadan r eveals. The Gurkha Regiments fought ar Gallipoli, and Madan himself has se rved with tl1e Gurkhas. As Commandant of the 58 Gmkha Training Centre at Shillong in India's nortl1 -east - where a g iant portrait of him still stands in the Officers' Mess - Madan identifies himself very closely with the Gurkha cause.

A history lesson

It is a little- known fact that undivided Inclia was the largest contributor to the war effort among all British colonies a hundred ye ars ago. It sent over 620,000 combatants and 470,000 non-combatants overseas between August 19 14 and December 1915.

Gurkha and Sikh soldiers formed die majority of tl1e Inc:Lian mi.i ts rhat fought w ith the Brirish Armed Forces ill World Wat I in Egypt (1914- 15), France ( 19'1415), Mesopotamia (1918) a nd Gallipoli (19 15); and in World War II in Burma (1942-45), Malaya (1942-45) a nd in Lib ya ( 1941).

Thousands made the ultimate sacrifice (at Gallipoli al one, reports of d1e number of Indian dead \7 ary from 1400 to 1600); aud m any took home the cheri shed Vicmcia Cross.

If C,allipoli was one of rbe most disastrous campai1,ms in British militar y history, it also had some unbelievable victories thanks co the Gurkhas, after whom a feature in Turkey is still named to this clay. Shedding light on the campaigu, Robert Rhodes James wri tes i n Gallipoli (1965) :

011 the night of Mt!Y 12'"- 13'", there h"d been " bri!lirml ext1111ple of 111ht1f could be done with effective coordit111fion hetiveen the Nav rmid the Amo' 1vhen the G11rkht1s capt11red a hettvib' entrenched pro111ontory 1vhich dofllinated Y Beach and Spur IVith tmiserTalbot a11d destrq;·er Wolveri ne in close support, the llldi,111s stormed and captured the position, henceforth k11o)l)t1 as Gurkha Bluff1vith rel"tive!J tri/lwl cttmalties.

(The Indians were observed d1eu b y d1e young Captain W J Slim, who would go on to become the 13th Governor General of Australia He wrote as Fie ld .Marshall many years later, "[At Gallipoli) I was so struck by [rl, e Indians'] bearing in one of die most desperate battles in history that 1 resolved, should tl1e opporruni ty come , to try to serve witl1 t h em. Four years later i t came, and I spent man y of the happiest and, from a military point of v iew, the most valuab le years

A poign ant passage in the 1945 book Martitil fodia by F. YeatsBrown reveals the heroi sm of the 14'" Sikh Battalion at Gallipoli : T,, tbe highest sense of the 1Pord, extrnm gallantry has bem sho11m lo• this jiFJe battalion In spite of these tre111C11do11s losses, there was 110! a sign ef wave1ing all dcq. Not cm inch ef groundgained JJJas gi1,e11 up and 110I a Ji11gle stragg/er caJ11e back The e11dr ef thf mm!J's trenches leading into the raviFJe 111e1·e joHnd to be blocked with thf bodies of Sikhs and ef the cnmg who dies fighting at close q11a,ters, and the glacis slope wc,s thickb, dotted with the bodies ef these fine soldier-s all !Jing oFJ thei1)i1ces as thry fell in their stearfy ad,,ance 011 the e11et19. The histo,:y ef the Sikhs qfords 11tm!)' instances ef thfir value as soldie1-s, /mt it lite!)' be sqft91 asse,ted that 11othi11gfl11er than the gri111 Palo11r and slfa4)1discipline displqyed l!J them on the 4'1 ],me has ever bm, done V' the soldiers ef the Khalsa. Their devotion to du()• and their Jp!endid !qyaf!)• to their orders and to their leaden l/lc1ke a record their natioH sho11/d look back 11po11 with p,ide for mm!J generations.

The SA authorities, currently reviewing tl1eir dec ision, musr surely be acquainting themselves o f tl1ese and other aspec [s of the Indian involvem ent at Gallipoli. Perhaps they ·will also listen to historian Peter Stanley, who has described their ruling as "outrageous"

According co Prof. Stanley's research, "India had i ts 29' " Infantr y Brigade there and they SLLffe red casualtie s equally as bad as tl1e Anzacs".

He adds, "1ndfan troops not only landed w ith the A n zacs at Gallipoli but were a crucial parr o f the supply lines at Anzac Cove whe re they made sure food and water was kept up to the Australian troops".

Prof. Stanley is set to release h.is book on the ro le of Indian soldiers at Gallipoli shortly.

Meanwhile, his research collaborator at tl1e U niversity of Technology Sydney, Burcu Cervik Compiegne, is also planning an event entitled "Gallipoli Alternatives", to focus o n alternative stories on tl1e 'i,'{lh.iteAustralian vers ion

Sup~ort from the public

Major Ge neral Madan himse lf will not refer co the Anzac refusal as a "snub", bur Adelaide's only daily, The Adve1tiser, did the talking for him on Wednesday 27 August when it ran the large bold headline A11zac JHarch S1111b The front page news report said, "SA Indian community has been snubbed by AJ1zac Day o rganisers who will not allow repre;;entatives to march in honour of 15,000 of their countrymen who served alongside Diggers ac Galli poli".

Backing its front page stor y, The Adve11i.ren.vrore in its edi torial:

"There are many groups, nationalities and ethnic imerests which all hope to be part of the Anzac tradi tion, none witl1 m ore valid a claim than the Indian ex-servicemen who have made A d elaide h ome Ir is important to recognise that Australian and New Zealand troops were n ot a lone at Gallipoli and failure to do th.is would be incong ruous w ith the Anzac spirit irself". lt concluded " t he re is nothing that would suggest the inclusion of such a brave and loyal all y would do anything but enhance our Anzac :March".

Letters from readers flooded in the days following, la rgely in support.

Read er Matl1ew Swan wrote, " The fighting component of Anzac comprised 23 infa n try battaUons, 15 from Australia, 5 India and 3 New Zeala nd Of 50'10 Indians who served 1926 died and 3863 wounded. NZ and Australia bad a larger co n tingent and their killed were 2714 and 7594 respectively". He concluded, "This anomaly sho uld be corrected and the contrib ution of the Indian troops acknowledged". Estelle Mo rgan w rote, " It is about time the organisers wo ke up as co who was friend an d w ho was foe"

Peter Trapp said, '1f you exclude the Indian compo n ent, then you also exclude the Americans, the Free French, th e Greek and the Dutch I am surp rised the lndian forces have not been represented previously as several other Commonwealth nations".

In his long letter reader Denni s Coleman wrote '1f 1 5,000 servicemen from India's 29' " lnfantty either fought alongside Australia n Diggers or were a crucial part of tl1e supply line this would imply a strong case for them Allow them to prouclly join the l 00"' anniversary. "

Among the dissenters, o ne wri t er sai d, "Should tlus occur I suggest, respectfully, t he renaming of Anzac to Ainzac

AU else considered it wiJJ at lease sound reminiscent o f the Australian Twan g"

In a similar vein, \Xl:E Denny wrote tbat no foreign servicemen who served ooly in foreig n wars nor involving J\ustralia were allowed in the march and "why shou ld chis group be different." These m en were given the opportunity in tl1e " next of kin" section (i n 2011) b ut had refused. " The ir refusal suggests to me th at this is more about thdr egos tl1an commemorating d1eir forefathers "

In contrast, the Vietnam Veterans Association h as g iven its full backing to the Indian veterans' c laims. Its pres ident Jviichael Benyk said, "I can't understand i f you are o n the allied side in WW 1 and II w hy you can't march \Xlhen we came from Vietnam, the RSL didn't want to have anything to d o with us and didn't classify the Vietnam War as a war either".

\1(/icb so m u ch public support from the press and tl1e public, it is not surprising that the RSL is reported co be h aving a revie"r.

Maj -Gen. Vikran1 Madan s ays his grou p will app ly again and is hopeful the ban will be lifted for t he 100"' anniversary next year Fuelling hi s hope i s the indication from RSL State President Brig adier T im Hanna who said he had sympathy for di e Indian cause and another applicati on would be con si dered.

1n lus mo st interestin g letter to the paper, Ken Madigan of

Pt. Pirie narrated the well -known story of an Australian stretcher beare r John Simpson, who, having lost contact witb his uuit, attached himself ro tl1e lndiaJ1 contingent. In tl1e next 24 days he rescued htmdreds o f wounded Diggers on his d o nke y's back until he was s hot. Ken concluded, "The Indian s called him ''Bal1adur', bravest of tl1e brave. [ believe Simpson would expect cha t his Indian comrades should be among those honoured on the cen tena r y of Anzac Landing"

Vikram Grewal of Sydney, w h o was instrumental in getting an Indian contingent accepted in the Sydney parade and who has been participating since 2007, tells a simila r story. An Australian veteran he met recounted to him the story of bow he acrua ll y tracked down the descendants of a Sikh soldier he had fought with in World War 1, such was the impact di e lndian had had on him. Do we sense peace breaki n g our? Here's co seeing our veterans in Adelaide mar ching alongside the Diggers n ext year, like they do at Sydney, at Melbomne and at Per th.

IndianArmed Forces veterans in Adelaide who wish to be part of Vikram Madan's campaign may contact him on 0431194 854 or on vikram.madan@hotmailcom