A father’s words of unimaginable sorrow at losing his family in the Port Arthur massacre will go on public display as a defining moment in Australian history.
“As the person who lost his wife and two beautiful daughters at Port Arthur, I am writing to you to give you the strength to ensure no person in Australia ever has to suffer such a loss,” Walter Mikac wrote to then prime minister John Howard.
That was nine days after the country’s worst mass shooting when a gunman killed 35 people in the Tasmanian town on April 28, 1996.
Among the victims were Mr Mikac’s wife Nanette and their two young daughters, Alannah and Madeline.
“With all my heart, I implore you to restore Australia to being the best place in the world,” Mr Mikac ended the letter.
The correspondence between Mr Mikac and Mr Howard spurred historic national gun controls, through legislation that passed in a matter of weeks with bipartisan support.
More than 25 years later, the National Museum of Australia will acquire the series of letters between the grieving father and the nation’s leader.
Mr Mikac described feelings of powerlessness and deep grief that compelled him to take action at the time.
“Writing to prime minister John Howard was the logical choice. If our gun safety was going to change it had to come from the top,” he said in the museum’s announcement of the acquisition.
A speech that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is to deliver on Thursday describes Mr Mikac’s words as “one of the most extraordinary things I have ever read in my life” which tell the story of a devastating tragedy.
“When your children are aged three or six, you are their hero – not necessarily for anything you do, simply for who you are,” Mr Albanese will say.
“Tragically, Alannah and Madeline didn’t live long enough to know that their dad is a hero to all of us.
“Mr Mikac, your words belong to history now. Your actions, your legacy, continue in perpetuity.”
However, no Australian state or territory is fully compliant with the agreement set out after the tragedy.
State and territory police ministers last week agreed to consider a model for a national firearms register to help police tackle gun violence which will be put to national cabinet in July.
– AAP
