Defence Minister Stephen Smith yesterday apologised to military and civilian victims in Parliament for decades of abuse and released a raft of responses to six abuse inquiries to be funded from the rapidly shrinking defence budget.
“In the end there is a price to pay and Defence will bear the burden of the cost of this matter,” he said.
He also announced a high powered taskforce led by former WA Supreme Court judge and ex- Army Reserve major-general Len Roberts-Smith, to tackle 775 allegations of abuse over more than half a century with victims to be entitled to up to $50,000 each in compensation.
Signalling his intent from day one Mr Roberts-Smith, the father of Victoria Cross winner and SAS trooper Ben Roberts-Smith, said there were very significant privacy issues associated with the allegations and he was determined to maintain procedural fairness.
Critics immediately questioned the appointment of an “insider” such as Mr Roberts-Smith and labelled the $50,000 maximum compensation as “insulting and inadequate” and well below state-based criminal damage compensation schemes.
In Western Australia, for example, the maximum is $75,000.
Mr Smith said young men and women had suffered treatment that no member of the defence force or the community should experience.
“(They) have endured sexual, physical or mental abuse from their colleagues which are not acceptable and do not reflect the values of a modern, diverse (and) tolerant Australian society.”
Mr Smith yesterday revealed that several serving military personnel would be referred to the taskforce or to police or prosecutors over alleged assaults at the Australian Defence Force Academy in the 1990s.
On a historic day in Canberra the Defence Chief, General David Hurley, also issued a written apology to victims.
“On behalf of the ADF, I say that I am sorry to those who have suffered sexual, physical or mental abuse while serving in the ADF,” he said.
Among those reacting critically was a Perth barrister, who was raped with a broom handle at ADFA in 1989 by several cadets including some still serving as senior officers.
The man, who asked not to be named, said the payout figure and the choice of an insider such as Mr Roberts-Smith was a damning indictment of the lack of willingness to tackle abuse.
After the assault and while he was in hospital the lawyer was told to “harden up or get out”. “They should have appointed someone from outside the military club,” he said.
Mr Roberts-Smith will be joined on the taskforce by former head of the Attorney-General’s Department Robert Cornall, former sex discrimination commissioner Susan Halliday and Australian Federal Police deputy commissioner Rudi Lammers.
Mr Smith also yesterday announced the introduction of a free abuse hotline on 1800 424 991 to deal with the issue.
Mr Smith released a raft of responses to the six inquiries that he established in the wake of the so-called ADFA Skype sex scandal including:
- Referral of appropriate matters to police for formal criminal investigation and prosecution
- A free abuse hotline on 1800 424 991.
- Restorative justice where a victim and alleged perpetrator meet face-to-face
- Referral to the military justice system or other Defence process
The Government’s sweeping response to alleged abuse follows 775 credible claims between 1951 and 2011 identified by law firm DLA Piper.
Mr Smith also announced the Government’s response to the review of the treatment of women at ADFA and in Defence by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Liz Broderick.
It includes establishing a dedicated Sexual Misconduct Prevention and Response Office and allowing confidential reports of sexual harassment, sex discrimination and sexual abuse to occur outside the chain of command.
Source: news.com.au