SUNGAI UDANG - Sebanyak 32 rangka warga Australia dihantar pulang ke negara asal selepas lebih 50 tahun bersemadi di Perkuburan Perang Commonwealth (CWG), Kem Terendak, di sini, semalam.
Kesemua rangka termasuk 24 tentera yang terkorban samasa perang Vietnam dan darurat Malaya itu dihantar pulang selepas diberi tabik hormat oleh 400 tentera Malaysia.
Rangka tersebut terlebih dahulu dibawa ke Pangkalan Udara, Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM) bagi proses penyerahan rasmi kepada pihak dalam satu upacara istiadat dijadualkan hari ini.
Rangka dikenal pasti terdiri daripada 24 anggota tentera Australia dan lapan ahli keluarga mereka yang mati ketika konfrontasi, darurat dan peperangan Vietnam antara tahun 1964 hingga 1968 itu dibawa dalam keranda menggunakan 32 kereta mayat disediakan Pesuruhjaya Tinggi Australia.
Pelepasan konvoi tersebut turut disaksikan Ketua Menteri, Datuk Seri Idris Haron; Timbalan Pesuruhjaya Tinggi Australia ke Malaysia, Dr Angela Macdonald dan Panglima Latihan Tentera Darat, Mejar Jeneral Datuk Tengku Ahmad Noor Tuan Chik.
Turut hadir, Panglima Tiga Divisyen, Mejar Jeneral Hasagaya Abdullah dan Pemangku Pengarah Muzium Tentera Darat, Mejar Abdullah Sani Mohamed; Ketua Penyelidik Muzium Tentera Darat, Kapten Muhammad Zuraiman Abdul Ghani serta 400 warga Angkatan Tentera Malaysia (ATM).
Terdahulu, bendera Australia turut diturunkan sebagai simbolik selesai pelaksanaan Ops Reunites yang melibatkan proses eskavasi dan identifikasi yang berakhir pada 23 Mei lalu.
Pelaksanaan operasi itu dilaksanakan dengan kerjasama kedua-dua kerajaan menerusi Kementerian Pertahanan dan Kementerian Pertahanan Australia sebagai membalas budi dalam membantu negara ini menerusi operasi pencarian pesawat MH370 yang hilang sejak 2014.


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SABTU, 21 MEI 2016 @ 6:56 PM 

Rangka 32 tentera, warga Australia akan dihantar pulang 

Oleh Amir Mamat bhnews@bh.com.my

MELAKA: Rangka 32 warga Australia yang dikebumikan di Perkuburan Perang Commonwealth (CWG) Kem Terendak, di sini, pada awal tahun 1960-an, akan dihantar pulang ke negara asal mereka hujung bulan ini. 

Kerja menggali dan mengumpulkan semula rangka serta beberapa anggota yang masih sempurna menerusi Ops Reunites itu, dilakukan secara bersama oleh kedua-dua kerajaan, menerusi Kementerian Pertahanan Malaysia dan Kementerian Pertahanan Australia. 

Fasilitator Ops Reunites, Datuk Dr Mohd Ilham Haron, berkata operasi berkenaan bermula dengan titipan surat diplomatik oleh kerajaan Australia kepada kerajaan Malaysia yang memohon bantuan untuk membawa keluar mayat warga negara terbabit yang dikebumikan di Malaysia.

Katanya, mayat berkenaan terdiri daripada anggota tentera dan ahli keluarga mereka serta penjawat awam Australia yang bekerja di negara ini, termasuk anggota tentera yang mati ketika konfrantasi, darurat dan perang Vietnam antara tahun 1964 hingga 1968. 

"Susulan itu, Menteri Pertahanan Australia, Marise Payne mengadakan kunjungan hormat ke atas Menteri Pertahanan, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein pada April lalu, mencapai kata sepakat untuk melaksanakan Ops Reunites. 

"Bantuan berkenaan adalah sebagai membalas budi kepada kerajaan Australia yang banyak membantu Malaysia dalam operasi pencarian pesawat MH370 yang hilang sejak 2014," katanya ketika ditemui selepas operasi itu, hari ini. 

Kerja menggali dan proses pengenalan rangka berkenaan dijangka selesai pada 24 Mei ini dan akan diserahkan kepada kerajaan Australia menerusi upacara penuh istiadat pada 31 Mei ini di Pangkalan Udara, Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM) Subang. 

Pemangku Pengarah Muzium Tentera Darat, Mejar Abdullah Sani Mohamed, berkata Ops Reunites itu dimulakan dengan mengesan kedudukan sebenar kubur berkenaan menerusi bantuan Agensi Nuklear Malaysia pada 28 Februari lalu. 

Katanya, kerja penggalian kubur dilakukan sejurus ketibaan pasukan bantuan dari Australia diketuai Pengurus Menjejaki Kehilangan Mangsa Perang Australia, Brian Manns.

 "Kerja menggali kubur ini dapat mengesan semula tinggalan jasad yang masih elok melalui proses pengecaman berdasarkan rekod perubatan sedia ada, di samping pengesahan cap jari, ujian asid deoksiribonukleik (DNA) atau tanda tertentu yang ditemui dalam kubur si mati," katanya. 

Sementara itu, Manns berkata, beliau bersama beberapa pakar dari negara terbabit kini sedang giat melakukan proses mengenal pasti jasad 24 anggota tentera dan lapan ahli keluarga mereka yang dikebumikan di CWG itu.

PERKUBURAN Perang Commonwealth (CWG) Kem Terendak, Melaka. - Foto Khairunisah Lokman 

keluarga mereka yang dikebumikan di CWG itu. PERKUBURAN Perang Commonwealth (CWG) Kem Terendak, Melaka. - Foto Khairunisah 



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Exhumed remains of 32 Australian 

soldiers, families flown to Sydney

Posted on 31 May 2016 - 06:54pm
Last updated on 31 May 2016 - 07:54pm

SUBANG: The exhumed remains of 24 Australian servicemen and eight civilians buried in Malaysia were flown to Australia today.
The remains, which were exhumed from the Commonwealth War Cemetery at the Terendak Camp in Malacca, were flown to Australia in a C-17 Royal Australian Air Force aircraft from the Royal Malaysian Air Force base in Subang near Kuala Lumpur.
Deputy Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Johari Baharum was at the airbase where the remains were handed over to the RAAF.
He said the remains would arrive at the RAAF base in Richmond, Sydney, on Thursday after a stopover in Darwin for a Customs inspection.
Some 224 soldiers of the Royal Malay Regiment were involved in the handing over of the remains with full military honours to 61 soldiers of the Australian Army at the airbase under an operation codenamed "Operation Reunites" or "Ops Reunites".
Twenty-one of the Australian soldiers had died in the Vietnam War and three during the Emergency in the then Malaya.
The families of three Australian soldiers had opted to let their remains be kept at the Terendak Camp in Malacca.
Work to exhume the remains at Terendak Camp was conducted from May 4 to 21 and the identification process ended on May 23.
Mohd Johari said Ops Reunites was an experience for Malaysian soldiers in undertaking forensic work in the field.
"Australia is happy with the cooperation we extended to them in the operation," he said.
Meanwhile, Corporal Christopher Bowtell, 27, grandson of Corporal Robert Walter Bowtell, one of the Australian soldiers who died in the Vietnam War, said he was thankful to the Malaysian government for the full military honours accorded during the send-off ceremony for the 24 servicemen and their eight family members.
"My family is happy to see that my grandfather's remains will be brought back to our hometown and will be buried at Macquarie Park in Sydney.
"To me, my grandfather is a hero who had served the country and he was an inspiration for me to become a soldier," he said.
Christopher, who has served seven years in the military, said his grandfather died at the age of 33 during his second trip to Vietnam. — Bernama
http://www.thesundaily.my/news/1821016
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A warm homecoming for 32 Aussie heroes and family

 
MELAKA: Sydney, Australia will see a warm homecoming this June 2 when the 32 remains of Australian soldiers and family will be coming home on that day.
Twenty four gallant heroes and eight family members who died during the Vietnam War and Malayan Emergency and laid to rest at the Commonwealth War Graves, Terendak Camp, Sungai Udang here will finally be home.
Malaysian Defence Ministry, in a statement, said yesterday the effort named Operation Reunites or Ops Reunites, a collaboration between the Malaysian and Australian governments, aims to reunite the remains with their next-of-kin at the Land Down Under.
An official handing over ceremony will be done at the Royal Malaysian Airforce Base, Subang on May 31 and the remains will arrive at the Royal Australian Air Force Base in Richmond, Sydney on June 2 in a national level military ceremony, said the statement.
Meanwhile a song titled ‘I’m coming home’ sang by Skylar Grey echoed through the ears of journalists and cameramen involved in the media coverage of Ops Reunites at the Commonwealth War Graves here yesterday.
Australian Army’s Unrecovered War Casualties manager Brian Manns  said the families of the 32 Australians buried here from 1964 to 1969 had requested the Australian government to exhume and bring them back home.
He said his team worked in many countries and anywhere Australian soldiers remains were found.
According to him, the cooperation his team had received from their Malaysian counterpart was fantastic and demonstrated the closeness and team spirit between Malaysia and Australia.
“The way we work with our Malaysian counterpart is first grade and it is really a pleasure to work with them, the support we receive is the very best in the whole world,” he said.
Ops Reunites Facilitator Major General Datuk Dr Mohd Ilham Haron said it was  also a pleasure for the Malaysian Army to help Australia bring the remains back home.
“This operation shows how close Malaysia and Australia are, so we are really glad to help our friends and reunite the soldiers and families with their love ones back home,” he said.  – Bernama