Tuesday, 8 February 2022

3rd Cavalry Regiment (Vietnam) Association

Mr WALSH (Murray Plains) (15:33): I raise the concerns of the Vietnam veterans who served in the 3rd Cavalry Regiment in Vietnam. The 3rd Cavalry Regiment (Vietnam) Association have established a living memorial in Tongala for those who served in this regiment in Vietnam. Each year the association members come to Tongala and pay their respects to the former members of that regiment. It is a very powerful and very moving service involving both former and current service personnel. The two primary schools come along, and the wider community are very engaged in that particular service.

The concern the association has is that the memorial is partly on VicTrack land, which is leased to the association, specifically lot 46. Michael Thompson from the 3rd Cavalry Regiment (Vietnam) Association has tried to gain freehold to that land rather than leasehold. The association is concerned that sometime in the future this lease may be taken back and that part of the memorial will be destroyed because of that.

I ask the Minister for Veterans or the Minister for Public Transport to actually come to Tongala and see firsthand what the 3rd Cavalry Regiment (Vietnam) Association have created there with that memorial and to meet with Michael Thompson and have him show them around that particular memorial. The association needs a more secure tender for that memorial than a 10-year lease that could be taken back at some time in the future. I ask either minister to get involved and fix this issue.