THURSDAY marks the 70th anniversary of the cessation of hostilities in the Korean War conflict in which more than 17,000 Australian servicemen and women served.
At 10am Korean veterans and their families will mark the occasion with a 10am service at the Ipswich Soldier’s Memorial Hall in Nicholas Street.
One local veteran who won’t be there is Matthew Rennie, instead he will be standing proudly at a similar service being staged in Korea on the same day.
Following in his father’s footsteps, Matthew joined the Australian Army and as a newly trained soldier was sent to South Korea in 1952, joining 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment on the front line for 13 weeks.
“The first night I was there, there was a rocket attack. I was so naïve that I thought it was a spectacular fireworks display,” Matthew said.
“It wasn’t until the bloke I was relieving called out in distress and ushered me into a foxhole that I realised the seriousness of the incident.” Matthew’s naivety didn’t last long. As his battalion moved on to different positions, the reality of war soon set in.
“When the Chinese put in an attack, it wasn’t two or three; you’d have 200 charging in,” he says.
“And the noise was horrendous – the shell, the mortars, the machine guns and everything blazing.”
On 24 May 1953, Matthew experienced a near-fatal encounter after being shot in the back of the head.
If not for his best mate Frank, he would not be alive to tell the story today.
After 12 months in Korea, Matthew – like many veterans of the Korean War – returned to Australia as if nothing had happened.
“We were given a leave pass and told to go home – that was it,” he said.
“There was never any ‘job well done’, pat on the back or welcome home parade. Nothing. We just weren’t valued for what we were doing.”
In South Korea, however, Australian veterans are honoured as heroes.
When asked his most important message to share with the community this Korean Veterans’ Day, he said that is was vital that Korean veterans were no longer forgotten.
“They were great soldiers – some of the finest men Australia produced, I reckon. They were a credit to their country,” he said.
Matthew has never stopped supporting his fellow veterans. He’s served as State President of the Korea Veterans Association and spent years as a welfare officer and Legatee.
