Norway’s Head of Mission in Myanmar, Siv Kaspersen, joined a Remembrance Sunday ceremony at Htauk-kyant War Cemetery, organised by the British Embassy in Yangon.
In a Facebook post about her participation, the Norwegian Embassy remembered those who gave their lives for peace and freedom.
The embassy also expressed solidarity with people continuing to work for peace and democracy in Myanmar, connecting the commemoration with the country’s present-day challenges.
Remembering the war dead
Htauk-kyant, also known as Taukkyan War Cemetery, lies around 35 kilometres north of Yangon.
The cemetery contains 6,374 Commonwealth burials from the Second World War, including 867 unidentified casualties, according to Australia’s Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
It also holds the graves of 52 Commonwealth servicemen from the First World War, transferred there during the 1950s.
The cemetery was established in 1951 to bring together graves from battlefield cemeteries and other locations where permanent maintenance was difficult.
Within its grounds, the Rangoon Memorial commemorates almost 27,000 members of Commonwealth land forces who died during the campaigns in Burma and have no known grave.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission maintains the cemetery and its memorials.
Sources: Royal Norwegian Embassy in Yangon, Australian Department of Veterans’ Affairs
