Band Not Good Enough for Anzac Centennial Say Culture Snobs

Wellington’s volunteer 7th Battalion Band has been thoughtlessly ruled “not good enough” for Wellington’s centennial Anzac Day Dawn Serviceservice by cultural snobs, breaking a link between the battalion that served at Gallipoli and its band that carries their battle honours.

“We hand delivered a letter to the Prime Minister’s office asking him to intercede in a decision which is a travesty of history,” says New Zealand First Defence Spokesperson Ron Mark.

“He did not reply and instead hid behind the Ministry for Culture and Heritage’s CEO who made an unbelievably patronising reply.

“The band played at the WW1 in Water Colours exhibition last Friday. The band is very good as Wellingtonians who have attended the dawn service since World War Two will agree.

“They were good enough to play in Wellington last October for the Centennial of the Main Body’s sailing, ironically, at the behest of the Ministry of Culture and Heritage. They also played at the 2014 unveiling of the Coast Watchers’ Memorial and at Government House in 2013 before the Governor-General for the Territorial Force Amalgamation Parade.

“The RNZAF Band is a good band but they too are part-timers. What is happening here, is a airbrushing of history, which should not be allowed to stand. Simply put, the RNZAF and RAF did not exist in 1915 but the 7th Battalion Band did.

“We owe it to the memory of Lt Col Malone’s battalion and the bandsmen who fought and died at Gallipoli to have their battle honours paraded by their band on the centennial.

“I am stunned with such an appalling response from the ministry, but I am not surprised the Prime Minister, who doesn’t care for the flag and clearly doesn’t care about history, could not be bothered to write and sign a letter himself,” says Mr Mark.

ENDS

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