This morning, the Australian War Memorial unveiled the statue dedicated to Matron Vivian Bullwinkel on its grounds.
It stands not just as a sculpture of Vivian Bullwinkel, but all Australian nurses who have lost their lives, survived atrocities made sacrifices in service of their country.
It also includes 22 stainless steel discs to reflect the 22 victims of the Bangka Island Massacre arranged as a reflection of the stars as seen the night of 16 February 1942
Lest we forget
16-FEBRUARY-1942. Serving as a Staff Nurse in the 2/13th Australian General Hospital, Second Australian Imperial Force, Sister Vivian Bullwinkel would be the sole survivor of the Bangka Island Massacre at the hands of the Imperial Japanese Army. She would go on to be a Prisoner of War for three and a half years, but would never abandon her courage or resolve. Her career didn’t end in captivity, and she would go on to serve until 1947 when she would resume her nursing duties, up until the Vietnam War, when she would once again enter the battlespace to help the disadvantaged. She would receive honours and decorations for her service to the cause of nursing and would uphold those tenents until her death in 2000. She did more than just her job, and for that, we are immensely proud of her.
