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Soldier Jonathan Captain Webb studies Law at UNSW
L-R Jonathon Caption Webb with John Carr, Nura Gili first year student studying Social Work
by Rebecca Harcourt 9 October 2013
W
here are you from? My mob is the Dunghutti Tribe from the mid north coast of New South Wales, I was born in Redfern and was raised in Sydney. Congratulations on receiving the most outstanding soldier award. I understand you are only the second Indigenous soldier to win this award and you beat others who’ve been in the
service for longer and are ranked much higher. This is a fantastic achievement! For those who don’t know much about the army can you explain what is a Marchingout parade? A march out parade is a ceremonial parade for graduates of 1RTB, where the graduating platoon march in formation before their friends, family and high ranking military personnel. In a way it is similar to a university graduation. What does it mean to you, your
family& friends receiving such a great award? The award of most outstanding soldier is awarded to the soldier with the most outstanding soldierly qualities. These qualities are ones in which the Australian Army wish to instil in their soldiers for example, leadership, teamwork, discipline, initiative, loyalty and Respect. It is a real honour to receive this award, I never really never had the intention of receiving or in any way worked towards it. Although for my family and friends when I was presented my award at march out Page 1
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they had no clue I was receiving the award as I never told them. So they were really surprised and proud of me.
Army Reserves, which is a parttime role within the Army. On January 31st I enlisted to serve my country.
When did you first come interested in being a soldier? From a younger age, I always wanted to be two things the fist one was a soldier and the second was a lawyer/politician. After finishing high school I was going to join the Australian Army full-time, I passed all my interviews and selection courses was due to enlist of January 2012. Late 2011 I enrolled into the Nura Gili pre-programs in the faculty of Law. From there I was offered a place at UNSW to study Law. So i made the decision to study full time and postpone my enlistment into the army.
What type of qualities do the army look for? They look for individuals who have leadership skills, works well in a team and can follow orders, be resilient and take initiative. These are the qualities of an Australian Soldier
When did you enlist? After completing my first year of university I contacted the Army again to enlist in the Australian
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What kind of opportunities have you experienced/ are available through being in the army? The Army is unlike any other organisation, it has provided me with many skills I use in almost every aspect of life. The endless opportunities are there if one wishes, for example able to complete courses and post graduate education, opportunities to go on exercises and even deployment
overseas to war zones and on peacekeeping missions.
What motivated you to come and study at UNSW? I always wanted to study law, for me the opportunity seemed like once in a lifetime opportunity to be the first one in my family to go on to university to achieve a higher education. Can you share some insights into your degree? I am studying a Bachelor of Arts/ Law which is a double degree, for my Arts degree I am studying a double major in Politics and Indigenous studies. Current I am studying Introduction to private law, torts law, International relations and Popular culture Indigenous Australia. First published Nura Gili News 1/10/2013