Families of Australia's war dead interred in cemeteries in Malaysia and Singapore will lay their loved ones to rest at home when they are repatriated this week.
Thirty-two servicemen and civilians buried in Malaysia's Terendak Military Cemetery will arrive at the Richmond Royal Australian Air Force Base in Sydney at 10.30am on Thursday, the first step in their journey home.
The first Australian to die in the Vietnam War, who was buried in Singapore's Kranji Cemetery, will also be returned to Australia under the government-funded program.
"The repatriation is about remembering those who fought, endured and died to serve to their country," Detective Superintendent Gavin Dengate said on Monday.
The program means Australians killed in the Vietnam War will now receive equal repatriation treatment, following non retrospective changes to the law in 1966 that stipulated bodies of battlefield casualties be returned to Australia for burial, the Department of Veterans Affairs says.
After a private ceremony at the air base, police will form a green light corridor to allow the procession of 33 hearses to pass through the Parramatta CBD and western Sydney.
The public will have the opportunity to pay their respects and view the funeral procession as it passes through Parramatta between 12.45pm and 1.15pm on Thursday.
"We want the community to commemorate the occasion safely, and are reminding everyone to be respectful at all times," Supt Dengate said.
Reinterment services will take place across the country in the coming weeks.
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