It was a freezing but sunny morning in London. People gathered at the Memorial Gates, Constitution Hill to pay homage to the Commonwealth soldiers, the focus of this year's commemoration being the engagement at Gallipoli in 1915-16. Chairs were laid on the grass, as people greeted and met each other- MPs, Peers, Ambassadors from Commonwealth Missions, former President of Nigeria, representatives of the Light Cavalry of the Honourable Artillery Company, contingent of serving soldiers whose families come from several Commonwealth nations. The ceremony started with Queen's Guards passing by, followed by a speech from the Parton – Life President and the Chairman of the Memorial Gates Council.
Baroness Shreela Flather who has given a decade of her life to erect this Memorial Gates, started her speech by saying that this was her last year as the organiser. She said, “This Memorial was started by me in 1997, because that is the year I discovered there is no memorial for Indians. It started as the Memorial for Indians and as we went along, it was necessary to include the other non-white colonials. It's so important for the British today to remember all of us, who came served, fought and died. And we were being forgotten. But now to some extend we have reminded people about what happened. Now its upto you all, wherever you work or whatever you do, to remind them that a large number of Indians were there, in the first war, the Africans fought in Africa, the Germans were in Afrtica, and in the second war some Nigerans were actually in Burma. We owe something to all the people who are remembered here. Nepal was almost like an off-shoot of Britain, it was never a colony, they were integral part of the British army and still are. This is something I want all of you to take back with you.
“Baroness Scotland was on the Millenium Commission. I gave her a hand-written commission, for the money for this Memorial in October 1997. And she put that in the Committee the next day. There are people who have helped, we had wonderful trustees and there people still committed to the Memorial.
She paid homage to a dear friend of the Memorial, Mr Laurie Philpotts who passed away. He was one of those supporters of the West Indian origin, who came forward to help Baroness Flather right when she started her Memorial Gates journey. She also congratulated Dr Rami Ranger for his new CBE title and thanked him for sponsoring the tea at the commemoration ceremony for years.
Chairman Inderjeet Nihar said, “Since 1997 and beyond I have been hearing words like 'We were there too', 'we musnt let them forget' and this is what it's all about. This Memorial is a testimony to Baroness Flather and her hard work since 1997, without which there will be no memory of this time in this country. The Memorial Gates Council has a mission, which can be described by 3 Rs. The first R- stands for Recognition of 6.5mn volunteers for the Empire, king and country, from British India to British Africa to West Indies. The second R is to Remember- in terms of Gallipoli, is about the 5000 strong soldiers, the 14th Firozpur Sikh battalion, who fought alongside New Zealand, Australia and the Gurkhas, what is called Turkey today. It is not to take away anything from the heritage but to add to it. What's happening to the world today, we need to revisit history in a particular way. It is also recognition of the fact that we have amongst us representatives of Kamal Mustafa Atatur, where Turkey was born. The third R is to Re-educate, re-examine and re-illuminate history. Student of University of Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard are re-visiting history from a different perspective. This is what we are trying to achieve today. To re-educate society in the UK, that there were contributions by other communities, we are part of the same fabric...”
He also urged presents guests to attend the National Army Museum exhibition at the event, showcasing soldiers engagement at Galipolli, from Africans and Indian perspctives. And made a special mention about guests- representatives from Kenya, New Zealand and Australia, joining for the first time and representatives from the Turkish Embassy.
Rt Hon John Whittingdale Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sports said, “This Memorial gates which pay tribute to the huge sacrifices of all those from the Carribean community, Indian subcontinent who paid supreme sacrifice in both the two world wars. I would also like to pay tribute particularly to Baroness Shreela Flather, who made this commemorarion possible. This is a special year to mark 100th anniversary Gallipolli and battle of Somme, and the enormous contribution of what is now the Commonwealth, is being recognised through out to mark the first world war centenary. We depended on the extra ordinary courage of those who served and we must never forget the international nature of that effort...What makes their heroism all the more remarkable, is that they were mostly volunteers, fighting for a country upon which many of them would ever set eyes. We pay tribute to the Commonwealth war graves commission which manages war cemetries of soldiers at 23,000 location in 154 countries. Altogether more than 1.7mn people remembered. The sheer scakle of that sacrifice is exztraordinary. Soldiers from the Indian subcontinent played an important role through out the first world war. Those soldiers fought with most bravery, distinction, suffered appalling losses...”
Rt Hon Baroness Scotland QC Secretary General of the Commonwealth Designate said, “This morning is one of joy and sadness, we remember all of those who died so that we could be free, those who fought and lived to make a better world and make our Commonwealth real. It is a matter of great pride to me as a child of a Carribean, and a child of Commonwealth to be asked to be the Secretary General. It is a matter of great pride, because I stand here, I remember my grandfather fought in the first world war, and he fought with men from all over the commonwealth (representing 53 countries). And that legacy is one of amazing importance. I too would like to salute Shreela, without her passion and without her vision we won't be celebrating today...
“As I pass through these gates, on my way to House of Lords, I feel huge pride and I never ever fail to say a prayer and thank all of those who not only fought then, but also those who fight now to keep us free. The Commonwealth is a flame. We are a family. We were a family in the first world war, we were a family in the second world war and we are a family today. We are bound by common values, common beliefs, in justice, in peace, in liberty and the new Charter is our legacy. So for those who fought for our freedom, it is our responsibility now to fight for the freedom of the 53. And I hope that we will not let them down, that they did not die in vain. And it's moving therefore to gather together as the flame burns above this Memorial and to remember the many members of the armed forces from all the 5 regions of the Commonwealth who served in the first and second world war. We also should remember that they did so voluntarily, they were not bound or forced. They stood together for what was right and free...”
The speeches were then followed by a minute silence and the Last Post. The event concluded with music, the wreath laying ceremony and a short speech by the former President of Nigeria.
