Joint Ceremony Honors CPL Sukanaivalu VC and Pacific War Dead

8th/9th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment

Concluding Sukanaivalu VC Infantry Week was a joint ceremony that saw soldiers, NCOs and Officers from the RFMF, ADF, and NZDF come together to commemorate the sacrifices of CPL Sukanaivalu himself as well as the war dead of all three nations

The gallant deeds of CPL Sukanaivalu read as follows:

“On June, 23rd, 1944 at Mawaraka, Bougainville, in the Solomon Islands, CPL Sefanaia Sukanaivalu crawled forward to rescue some men wounded when their platoon was ambushed. After recovering two men this N.C.O. volunteered to go alone through heavy fire to try and rescue another – but on the way back was seriously wounded and fell to the ground unable to move further. Several unsuccessful attempts were made to rescue him; and realising that his men would not withdraw while he was still alive CPL Sukanaivalu raised himself up in front of the Japanese machine gun and was riddled with bullets. This brave Fiji soldier, after rescuing two wounded men with the greatest heroism and being gravely wounded himself, deliberately sacrificed his own life knowing that in no other way could his men be induced to retire from a situation in which they must have been annihilated.”

-London Gazette, 2 Nov 1944.

The joint ceremony was a sombre occasion, and our contingent was honoured to take part in the ceremonial traditions of our Pacific partners.