Hugo Halliday PR and Marketing Pty Ltd congratulates General Peter Cosgrove on being selected to be Australia’s next Governor General.
General Cosgrove is a man of the people as he has demonstrated by his military prowess in East Timor and his sorting out disaster relief issues in cyclone-ridden Queensland.
Hugo Halliday has a number of connections with General Cosgrove. The company’s Managing Director Bill Pickering and Senior Communications consultant Christopher Holcroft both served militarily with the former head of the Australian Defence Force.
In 1998 the then Major Christopher Holcroft was part of the Australian Army’s preparatory exercise for Major General Cosgrove, Exercise Rainbow Serpent, before he flew into East Timor. Exercise Rainbow Serpent was held in Enoggera Barracks, Queensland in November 1998 with participants from America, Britain, Canada and Australia (ABCA).
MAJ Holcroft was one of the pseudo civilian Media team whose job was to put the General and his top UN-sanctioned Interfet peacekeeping force staff he would take to East Timor through their Media preparations.
The following year, former Lieutenant Colonel Bill Pickering was in charge of the Australian Defence Force Public Affairs team in Dili when more than 300 Media personnel from around the globe descended into East Timor to monitor General Cosgrove and his troops as the Indonesian Army and Indonesian-backed militia groups withdrew from a smouldering East Timor.
After General Cosgrove retired from the military in 2005 as the Chief of the Australian Defence Force he wrote his book “General Peter Cosgrove – My Story” (Harper Collins, 2007, ISBN: 9780732283858). In it he gives a wonderful insight into the man who will become our next Governor General.
General Cosgrove tells the story of flying into Dili airport aboard a Royal Australian Air Force Falcon passenger jet in September 1999. He could see the still burning capital of Dili and notice the airport ringed by hundreds of heavily armed Indonesian soldiers. Cosgrove’s mission was to meet with the head of the Indonesian soldiers, Major-General Kiki Syahnakri, who he noticed, was wearing a pistol.
Accompanying General Cosgrove were a number of military colleagues wearing pistols and a small contingent of heavily armed Special Air Service Regiment Troopers. Cosgrove gave the order for “Weapons off” and directed his SASR soldiers to stay onboard the aircraft while he and his team met General Syahnakri.
General Cosgrove decided diplomacy rather than full-on military aggression, was the best way to meet the Indonesians. His decision paid off and showed his acute military acumen when it came to analysing urgent and emerging combat issues. He also showed his business prowess and love of the people with his handling of Cyclone Larry relief efforts in 2006.
Cyclone Larry hit northern Queensland on 20th March 2006 as a Category 4 with wind gusts reaching 240 kms per hour. It resulted in roughly $1.5 billion and was the costliest tropical cyclone to ever impact Australia; surpassing Cyclone Tracy in 1974.
General Cosgrove will lead Australia’s commemorations of Centenary of ANZAC Day next year at Gallipoli.
Featured Image: Major-General Peter Cosgrove, the commanding officer of Interfet shakes hands with East Timorese as Xanana Gusmao (C) looks on in Dili. Photo: Reuters