Australian special forces dog Sarbi honoured in new exhibition commemorating Afghanistan conflict
An Australian special forces dog who survived alone for more than a year during the war in Afghanistan will be the focus of a new exhibition commemorating Australia’s involvement in the conflict.
Explosive detection dog Sarbi became one of the most well-known faces of the conflict when he disappeared during a Taliban ambush in Uruzgan province in 2008. After being separated from his handler, Corporal David Simpson, he survived alone at military bases in the area for 13 months until he was miraculously found by a US soldier and reunited with Australian troops.
The Labrador-Newfoundland cross was stuffed following his death in 2015 and forms the finishing touch to the new Afghanistan gallery, located within the redeveloped Anzac Hall of the Australian War Memorial (AWM), which will be opened on Thursday.
AWM director Matt Anderson, who served as Australia’s ambassador to Afghanistan in 2015 and 2016, said the new gallery would honor the 40,000 personnel who served in the conflict from 2001 to 2021.
“This is the most comprehensive exhibition ever created on Australia’s involvement in Afghanistan, its longest war,” he said.
“It tells our unifying story of service and sacrifice through the experiences and voices of the men and women who put themselves on the line in our uniform and on our behalf.”
Mr Anderson hoped that visitors, especially schoolchildren and young people, would see the respect shown to Sarbi, reflect on his loyalty and bravery, and ask difficult questions about the war.
“I imagine that when Sarbi’s harness is removed at the end of his patrol, it will be a perfectly normal and loving moment for the men and women at the base of operations to just mess around with a dog and throw tennis balls around,” he said.
“For our veterans, this must have given them a tremendous sense of relief, a chance to have that love and bond in the middle of the war to get away from fighting.
“Having Sarbi now displayed in galleries also allows children to ask questions about the nature of this conflict and the nature of war.”
In addition to Sarbi, the new gallery includes preserved warplanes, long-range patrol vehicles and many photographs and works of art from that period.
It also includes material from the Brereton Report into war crimes committed in Afghanistan from 2005 to 2016, which the AWM said “places this in the broader context of Australia’s two decades of service”.
AWM collections logistics manager Kassandra Hobbs oversaw the move of more than 3,700 objects during the gallery’s redevelopment and said although there were many logistical challenges, she was proud of her team’s effort and Sarbi’s location in Anzac Hall.
“It’s fitting that a dog who never gives up would be the last (of the items to be installed),” he said.
“You have to really pay attention to how you move (objects), how they fit into the space, and always think 10 steps ahead.”
“Each of these (objects) has a story and has been carefully preserved… the curators, the exhibition designers, the construction workers were all involved. It’s really a total team effort and I’m really proud of it.”
Mr Anderson said visitors would gain a better understanding of why Australia was involved in the war and continue to honor the legacy of those who fought for the country.
“People will understand why we went, starting with (the 9/11 terrorist attacks) and the War on Terror, which affected us deeply, and they will understand what was asked of everyone who went there,” he said.
“These veterans have waited long enough and frankly they are owed no less than to have their stories told at the Australian War Memorial so the nation can be proud of what they have done on our behalf.”
