New Years revellers remember wave victims

SYDNEY, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- Australians and New Zealanders ringing in the New Year's stopped the party for one minute at midnight to remember those killed by the Indian Ocean tsunami.

In Sydney, home to one of the world's earliest and biggest New Year's parties, officials told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. that plans that had been in place for weeks could not be scaled back. But there was a moment of silence among the crowd of more than one million just before the midnight fireworks display.

Those attending the celebration or watching on television were asked to keep the victims in their thoughts and to donate to relief efforts. Oxfam, the international aid group, used the Sydney Harbor Bridge to project an appeal for donations.