Anzac Day messages from PM Jacinda Ardern and Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro:

More than a hundred years after New Zealand troops landed at Gallipoli, Anzac Day remains as important to us as ever.

New Zealanders up and down the country will mark this day in many different ways, and will reflect on the unique meaning it has for each of us. I hope that many of us can connect, together or in spirit, with the veterans in our communities who are central to Anzac Day and all that it represents.

One hundred years ago, in 1922, New Zealand was still experiencing the immediate after-effects of war. The enormous task of reintegrating veterans was ongoing, along with a growing realisation that there was no end in sight to the war’s ramifications for families, livelihoods and communities.

Looking back, we know that many lives were never the same again. We know, too, that many more instances of war and conflict have occurred since.
This year, Anzac Day is especially poignant as we think of the recent invasion of Ukraine. The events in Ukraine have been shocking and distressing, and for those who have experienced war in the past, they are surely a most grim reminder of the devastation it can wreak.

Anzac Day is a time for all of us to think of those in our communities who have experienced war and conflict – those whose lives have been lost, our veterans, our armed services personnel, families of the fallen, and our refugee communities.

Today, let us think too of our fellow New Zealanders experiencing fear and heartache for their families and friends affected by current conflicts around the world.

Acts of war can show us humanity at its worst. However, New Zealanders who have fought for our country have exhibited the best of human values – values such as courage, compassion and the spirit of service.

Let us never forget their example. On Anzac Day, as we honour our service personnel, we also honour who we are as New Zealanders. Because, ultimately, it is upholding the best of human values even in the most difficult of times that makes us stronger.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern

As New Zealanders gather to mark Anzac Day this year, our attention turns to the courageous actions of our service personnel, and the sacrifices they have made across our history. We take time today to remember the generations of New Zealanders who, without guarantee of safe return, left their homes and families for shores unknown.

While we reflect on their experiences, we are also given cause to consider the division that exists in our world today, and the enduring impact of war and conflict.

That impact goes far beyond any measurable tally. For every soldier lost, a family is left bereft. For every returned veteran, painful memories are left unspoken. For every individual touched, lives are changed forever.

As we bear witness to events unfolding around the world, we see that the human toll of conflict is not confined to the past, nor to a single generation.

This Anzac Day, while we pay tribute to the sacrifices throughout our history, I encourage New Zealanders to also consider the present.

Be it mokopuna who never had the chance to know their koro, or a former refugee family uprooted from their homeland – none of us are far removed from someone who has experienced the enduring impact of war. Let us also consider their journeys today.

And most importantly, let us pay tribute to our veterans: New Zealanders who served our country, and who sacrificed so much in the name of peace and freedom.

As we share in this day of remembrance and reflection, it is our privilege to honour you. Your service, and that of your compatriots who never saw New Zealand’s shores again, leaves a legacy that spans generations. Our duty is to uphold that legacy by continuing to stand against division and hatred, and by striving for a peaceful future for all.

Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro