The NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA) laid a wreath on behalf of our professions at a ceremony commemorating the lives lost at the Bangka Island massacre.
Nurse Mark Brennan, Branch President of the NSWNMA’s Port Macquarie Branch, laid a wreath at the Port Macquarie event, which was held to mark the massacre.
The event commemorated the Bangka Island massacre, where 22 unarmed Australian nurses were killed by Japanese forces in World War II, along with a number of Australian, British and American soldiers and crew.
Mr Brennan said he was honoured to represent the NSWNMA and the nursing and midwifery professions at the event.
“[The NSWNMA] was asked by the Port Macquarie RSL sub-branch if we would like to lay a wreath at the event, and I was honoured to represent my colleagues to remember the nurses who lost their lives at the massacre,” he said.
“We commemorated the nurses who were shot at Bangka Island in 1942. Vivian Bullwinkel was the only nurse to have survived the ordeal.”
The event was attended by a number of RSL members and the Australian Armed Forces, including the Royal Australian Army Nursing Corps Association.