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Following has been received by Mike "Subs" Subritzky for your info/action as you see fit. My Fellow Antarcticans!
As you will recall I recently wrote to the Prime Minister and respectfully requested that those Antarctic Veterans who served on "Operation Overdue" receive an immediate award of the NZSSM. My request for this award was based on the recent awarding of the NZSSM to those brave young Kiwi's who were involved in the Tsunami.
Here Brother's and Sister's is the reply I received today from The Hon Phil Goff, Minister of Defence:
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Minister of Defence
27 MAR 2006
Dear Mr Subritzky
Thank you for your letter to the Prime Minister concerning the institution and award of the New Zealand Special Service Medal (NZSSM) (Asian Tsunami), and your request for the immediate award of the NZSSM to those police and other personnel who were involved with 'Operation' Overdue' in 1979. Your letter has been referred to me for response because this is a matter that falls within the Defence portfolio.
The NZSSM was instituted in 2002 for members of the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) and 'certain other New Zealanders who undertake services that are not normally recognised by a campaign medal.' Such special services include service or work for New Zealand in very difficult, adverse, extreme or hazarddous circumstances that fall outside the boundries of what individuals could normally expect as part of their routine duties or work. Special service often involves risk (whether physical, environmental or psychological) similar to operational service, without fitting the criteria of operational service.
As you note in your letter, the award of the NZSSM (Asian Tsumani) recognises the special service performed by New Zealanders who assisted in the rescue, relief and rehabilitation efforts in the areas which were devasted by the Boxing Day 2004 earthquake and resulting tsunami. The medal is awarded to those individuals who, for at least seven days, were exposed to physical risks, (including aftershocks of the earthquake, the risk of disease and infection, and possible conflict between seperatist and government forces in Aceh and Sri Lanka) and psychological risks (including body recovery, victim identification and the scale of the devastion.
Routine service by NZDF personnel in the Antarctic has not been categorised as 'operational service' or 'special service' for the purposes of medallic recognition, and it is unlikely that this situation will change. However, specific 'special service' in Antarctica could be considered elegible for the institution of a new award of the NZSSM, provided that this service involved risks similar to operational service. The distinction that would be made is between the normal expectations of Antarctic service, and thos extraordinary circumstances whereby Antarctic service could be considered to be 'special' by approaching the levels of risk associated with operational service. While no 'immediate' award is possible, I can confirm that 'Operation Overdue' is one of a number of examples of 'special service' performed by New Zealanders under consideration by the government for possible future awards of the NZSSM.
Yours sincerely
(signed)
Hon Phil Goff
Minister of Defence
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Please give this email your widest promulgation amongst the Veterans community. I would also hesitate to suggest that, this being the "YEAR OF THE VETERAN" if as many of us as possible could put pen to papaer and write to the Minister describing the "Special Service" conditions, safety, hazards etc to the office of the Prime Minister we might all of us start getting taken seriously.
For those other Veteran's groups who receive a drop copy of this email...particularly the ANZUK guys and the NZ DEF FORCE guys, you might just be able to pick up a 'hint' of something "possibly" (and I say "possibly" only), headed your way in the Minister's last paragraph.
Warmest regards for the Year of the Veteran
Regards,
Mike "Subs" Subritzky
National President
New Zealand Antarctic Veterans Association
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PS. Please give this email your widest promulgation amongst the Veterans community. Cheers.
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