The 52-year-old Maitland businessman knows only too well the cost of World War I.

“Of 36 fine young men from our immediate and extended family who went to fight, only one came home,” Mr Haskara said.

“One of them died at Gallipoli.”

Mr Haskara visited the battlefields there himself two years ago, which he said was an extremely emotional experience.

“Words cannot describe the emotions I felt there,” he said. “And as a citizen of both countries, I can see both sides.

“Having ancestors who died in World War I on the Turkish side, this 100th commemoration of Gallipoli means a lot to me.

“But having said that, we should all learn lessons from history, to try to ensure wars don’t happen again.”

He said World War I had grave consequences for millions of people and many were still with them today.

“Times were very tough,” he said.

“My grandfather, as a young child, had to beg for food in the streets.

“Before the war, his family had been very wealthy.

“Afterwards, they were left with nothing, which is maybe why I am  in Australia.”

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Mr Haskara believed the mutual bond between Australia and Turkey was now more significant than differences between the two peoples.

“As the years ago by, I believe World War I will become more and more important to the people of both countries,” he said. “For Turkey, the Gallipoli campaign has given shape to the country’s modern identity.

“Gallipoli helped Turks to build their nation – we founded our own republic and Turkey is now a modern secular state and a NATO ally.

“Though it is not up to the same standard as Australia in terms of freedom of speech and democratic reforms, I think Turkey is working hard to bring this about.

“I am honoured to be in Australia and particularly honoured to be taking part in the 100th Gallipoli commemoration.

“I hope this event will help us all to understand the mistakes made by both parties.

“And learning from this may prevent something like World War I happening again.”