Police officers honour fallen colleagues

Australia has been told not to mourn but to honour the 741 police officers killed in
the line of duty since 1803.

Services were held across the country on Tuesday to mark National Police Remembrance
Day, an annual reminder of the ultimate sacrifice made by men and women in blue.
In Melbourne, the brother of slain police sergeant Gary Silk reminded Victorians of
the ultimate sacrifice of 151 officers for their communities.
Since Victoria Police was established in 1853, 121 officers have been accidentally
killed in the line of duty.
On National Police Remembrance Day and Blue Ribbon Day on Tuesday, Sgt Silk's
brother, Ian Silk, said a further 30 officers have been murdered on duty - an
average of one every five years.
"The average age of those murdered officers has just been 29 years of age - what a
price paid," he told the crowd gathered at the Victoria Police Memorial in
Melbourne.
"As a community we don't simply shrug our shoulders and accept that price. Instead,
we are shocked and we're saddened and in the case of murdered police officers, we're
angered."
Blue Ribbon Day, which aims to honour police killed in the line of duty and raise
money for emergency medical equipment, began following the murder of Sgt Silk and
Senior Constable Rodney Miller on August 16, 1998.
They were shot dead by armed robbers Bandali Debs and Jason Roberts during a
stake-out of a restaurant.
In Brisbane, 600 police officers marched through the streets, as they did in
Melbourne, while in Sydney hundreds more gathered at the official ceremony at the
wall of remembrance in the CBD.
Candlelight illuminated one of the first services, held just before dawn in the
grounds of the Queanbeyan police station near Canberra.
Later, AFP Commissioner Tony Negus headed a heavy police contingent who gathered at
St Paul's Anglican Church in Canberra, sharing a minute's silence with colleagues,
including those stationed overseas.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the 21st National Police Remembrance Day was a time
to remember the brave police men and women who died on duty.
"On this day, it is important that we stop and remember the sacrifices they have
made, as well as that of their families, friends, and workmates, who will forever
live with their loss," Mr Rudd said in a statement.
A total of 741 police officers have given their lives while in service since 1803
but the day was not for mourning, South Australian Police Minister Michael Wright
said.
It was about honouring their memory and taking time to recognise the dangers they
faced in upholding the law and maintaining justice.
"Every police officer faces extreme danger in the pursuit of creating a safer
community," he said.
While no Australian police officers have died while on-duty in the past two years,
10 new names are set to be inscribed on the National Police Memorial in Canberra
this year.
The officers, all from Tasmania, died from 1817 to 1944.
Their names have been unearthed from old police reports and gazettes and will be
inscribed on the National Police Memorial in Canberra.
Eight of the 10, killed between 1817 and 1883, died at the hands of bushrangers.
"It is a timely reminder to us of how long police officers have been placing their
lives on the line to protect us," NSW police chaplain John Gibson said.
The day, which also marks Blue Ribbon Day, was also about embracing the wider police
community, NSW police commissioner Andrew Scipione said, including those officers
who have died through illness and other circumstances, as well as their families.
"When we wake up in our beds and realise that we've slept safely through the night,
it's because of the efforts of the men and the women who make up the NSW Police
Force," Commissioner Scipione said.
"And for those who didn't come home or who will not come home in the future, it's
important that we just pause, stop and remember those that have fallen and think of
those who are out there doing the job today."
Billy Lambert, who was one year old when his police officer father died in a surfing
accident, said the day helped him remember he was not alone.
The 15-year-old attended Sydney's ceremony as this year's recipient of the $5,000
Police Legacy Scholarship, which will go towards his future studies.
He hoped it would make his dad proud.
In Canberra, an honour roll of 11 names were read out during the church service,
commemorating Fijian officers and a New Zealander who have been killed on the job in
the past year.