Australia, a Commonwealth country, marks the official birthday of the British monarch with the annual King’s Birthday Honours list, which this year included 949 recipients.
The Australian government said in a statement that these ”exceptional Australians have been formally recognised for their service and achievement in the community and public service, industry and academia, science, the arts and sport.”
An estimated 250,000 Croats and their descendants live in Australia, making it one of the countries with the largest Croatian diaspora.
Cimera, who died three years ago, was a key figure in the development of the Melbourne Knights football club, founded by Croatian immigrants. The club won the Australian championship in 1995 and 1996, with Cimera contributing as an official to the development of football in that part of the country.
Hrvatski vjesnik, a Melbourne-based Croatian-language newspaper, said the honour awarded to Cimera “carries the deepest emotional weight” for many within the Croatian community in Australia.
His daughter Monica Cimera told The Star Weekly, a publication in western Melbourne, that the recognition of her father was both a proud and painful moment, adding that “it’s a huge honour and he deserved it,” referring to her father, who emigrated from Croatia as a child.
John Šipek, a local councillor in the City of Moonee Valley, was also recognised for his contribution to local government and the wider community.
He told social media that “this recognition is not just about one person. It reflects the many people, organisations and community groups I have had the privilege to work alongside over the years.” He said he hoped to help make his city “an even better place to live, work and raise a family.”
Former Australian senator Natasha Stott Despoja rounded off this year’s honours list. She served as a senator for South Australia from 1995 until her retirement in 2008.
She was recognised for her “eminent service to the prevention of domestic, family and sexual violence, to gender equity, and to the promotion of human rights and global systemic change.”
Stott Despoja told The Mandarin that while the enormity and generosity of the honour were difficult to process, she wanted to share her recognition with victim survivors.
Her connection to the Croatian community comes through her father, Mario Despoja, who headed a representative office established by the Croatian community in 1977, regarded as its embassy while Croatia was part of Yugoslavia. It was located in the Canberra suburb of Manuka and attracted considerable attention before being closed two years later under pressure from the then Yugoslav authorities.