Parties scrap over rival war shrines

By FRANCESCA MOLD political reporter

The two main political parties yesterday brawled over the veterans' vote by each releasing plans to build a memorial for soldiers whose bodies lie in foreign graves.

The political point-scoring by National and Labour on the day before thousands of New Zealanders gathered to honour fallen soldiers annoyed some war veterans.

Vietnam veteran John Jennings said Anzac Day should not be used to raise political issues.

But others from the Returned Services Association said they were pleased action was being taken to address veterans' issues and accepted that political scraps were part of the process.

National said that, if elected, it would build the tomb at the National War Memorial site in Wellington.

It also planned to give veterans a gold card entitling them to priority access to Housing New Zealand accommodation and hospital services, including surgery.

Labour moved to spoil National's moment by revealing it had already decided to build the tomb, similar to national monuments in Britain, the United States, Australia and Canada, by the end of next year.

Prime Minister Helen Clark had planned to make the announcement at the RSA conference this year but it had been brought forward because of National's release yesterday.

Veterans' Affairs Minister Mark Burton also revealed that officials were working on a card to give veterans special privileges, similar to that promoted by National.

But issues such as whether it would be seen as unfair and discriminatory and how much it would cost were still being worked through.

Mr Burton criticised National for the timing of its release, saying it was an inappropriate attempt at "headline grabbing".

Its proposal was not credible because it had no financial costings or details about how it would work.

"The National Party has already admitted that its support level among the over-65s is the lowest of any conservative party in the world," said Mr Burton.

"This is a desperate attempt to boost that support - but it won't work."

National's veterans' affairs spokesman, Richard Worth, hit back, describing the Government's counter-announcement about the proposed Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as a "spoiling tactic".

The gold card idea had been discussed with RSA officials who thought it was "magic", he said.

The Prime Minister told the Herald the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier would likely be dedicated on the 85th anniversary of the Armistice that ended World War I, at the 11th hour on the 11th day of November next year.

The National War Memorial in Wellington was a likely site, although others, including Parliament grounds and the Auckland War Memorial Museum were being considered.

She said the body of a New Zealand soldier killed on Europe's Western Front during World War I would be exhumed and buried in the tomb.

The soldier is expected to be chosen from among the 1396 buried in individual graves in France and Belgium.

The tomb is expected to cost about $100,000.

The establishment of a Tomb of the Unknown Soldier follows a tradition established by Britain in 1920 when it buried an unknown soldier in Westminster Abbey.

Helen Clark said she had commissioned a report from the Ministry for Culture and Heritage in November.

The report said that there had been a movement towards cutting remaining ties with Britain, and by establishing the tomb, New Zealand would be making a "symbolic statement of its own nationhood".

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