http://news.smh.com.au/national/battle-for-australia-day-in-september-20080626-2xf3.html
Battle for Australia Day - commemorating all who served and died in the defence of Australia in 1942 and 1943 - will be marked on the first Wednesday of each September.
Veterans Affairs Minister Alan Griffin said Governor-General Michael Jeffery had signed the proclamation - fulfilling a Labor election promise to declare a day of national observance for the battle for Australia.
Mr Griffin said Battle for Australia Day would commemorate the service and sacrifice of all those who served in defence of Australia in 1942 and 1943 when the nation faced its gravest peril.
He said this produced a national mobilisation of the entire population of some seven million people.
There will be a series of activities and commemorations occurring around the date which will be the first Wednesday in September each year to acknowledge the sacrifice and courage and the national that was something we can all be proud of, he told parliament.
Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson supported the decision to recognise the battle of Australia.
1942 was arguably the most important year in this country\'s history since European arrival, Dr Nelson said.
Wartime prime minister John Curtin announced the Battle for Australia when Singapore fell on February 15, 1942.
Mr Griffin said the first Wednesday in September had been chosen by members of the veteran community as it represented the first defeat of Japanese forces on land at the Battle of Milne Bay.
There were direct attacks on the Australian mainland, particularly in Darwin, and battles in the Coral Sea and Papua and New Guinea, including Milne Bay and the Kokoda Track, Mr Griffin said.
The day will also be an opportunity to remember the sacrifices of those on the home front, who lived in a time when the entire economy was directed towards the war effort.
Mr Griffin said Battle for Australia Day would not be a public holiday.
This proclamation will not detract from the importance of Australia\'s two most significant days of commemoration, Anzac Day and Remembrance Day, on which we remember all Australians who served and died in wars, conflicts and peace operations, he said.
