Veterans Affairs Minister Darren Chester says the Sir John Monash Centre will help better recognise the achievements and sacrifices of Australian soldiers on the western front in World War One.
Mr Chester, who is in France’s Villers-Bretonneux for the centenary of the April 25 1918 battle, inspected the new centre for the first time today and spoke to Australian visitors, saying it was a highly emotional experience.
He told The Australian the new centre would become the “centrepiece of Australia’s Remembrance trail on the Western front” and help broaden the Anzac story beyond its focus on the Gallipoli campaign.
“It is a high quality interactive centre that encourages us all to walk a mile in the boots of the Anzacs,” Mr Chester said. “Everyone I spoke to was highly complimentary of the design and the contents of the new centre.
“It’s quite an emotional experience as it uses the latest technology to tell a 100-year-old story. I think Australians should be very proud of this new centre and the way it tells a story of Australians at war on an international stage.”
