Many RSL branches feel frozen in time: beers, bingo and military banter. Which is why many women veterans don’t feel welcome.
- Professor, Director, Open Door: Improving the Wellbeing of Veterans, Public Safety Personnel and their Families, Flinders University
After years of hearings and almost 6,000 submissions, the final report has been tabled in parliament. It contains 122 recommendations for change in the Australian Defence Force.
The evidence presented and initial findings show how important the royal commission is.
There have been numerous inquiries into veteran suicide, mental health and combat trauma over the past 20 years — with little positive outcome.
A recent study found that male veterans under 30 have a suicide rate more than two times the national average. Yet, support for a royal commission into the problem is lacking.
Media reporting on women in the military plays an important role in cultural change. Recent research shows Australian newspapers focus on scandal and place responsibility on the women involved.
Addressing male cultures of tribalism and violence needs to be central to the response to reports of hazing and violence in Austrslia’s university colleges.
Military institutions and militarised cultures seek to generate a unity of people and purpose. Initiation rituals have been a historically stable strategy to achieve this.
As I was showering five or six senior [others] attacked me – they turned off the lights, tied my hands behind my back and proceeded to do things to me. I was held down whilst one of them put his penis…
In February, Victorian premier Denis Napthine locked the door and threw away the key for Hoddle Street mass killer Julian Knight. Despite being eligible for parole in May after serving a 27-year minimum…
Prime minister Tony Abbott’s three-word slogan “stop the boats” may be meeting its promise. Last Friday, Abbott was “very pleased” to point out that it was the “50th day without an illegal boat arriving…
Recent reports that the Australian Navy has turned back two asylum seeker boats to Indonesian waters remain shrouded under a veil of secrecy. Australia remains subject to downgraded levels of co-operation…
While many people are relieved Australia is concluding its operations in Afghanistan, the effects of our involvement have, in many ways, only just begun. Retired Major General John Cantwell, the author…
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has Elizabeth Broderick and her team to thank for recent progress in the war against sexism and perversion at the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA). But it is military…
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is again confronted by allegations of sexual humiliation and denigration of serving female members. The latest scandal involves claims that emails containing explicit…
Reports are coming in this morning that five* Australian troops have been killed in Uruzgan province in Afghanistan. But instead of falling victim to an IED, signature weapon of this long running conflict…
How does one establish a plan to lure one of your female colleagues into a dormitory room for consensual sex, but unwittingly into the scope of a webcam for broadcast? How does it come to fruition? What…
One could be mistaken for thinking that the recent flurry of activity around Defence abuse is a recent phenomenon. The Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) Skype Affair of 2011 drew nation-wide attention…
Defence minister Stephen Smith has released the findings of a series of reviews into last year’s ADFA sex scandal and the culture of the defence force. The scandal revolved around an incident in March…
Last week the world became a very scary place for television host Yumi Stynes when she quipped that Victoria Cross recipient Corporal Ben Roberts-Smith, looking buffed, ripped and tattooed in a public…
A video has emerged (WARNING: graphic content) depicting US Marines urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban fighters. Afghan President Hamid Karzai had led criticism of the Marines, while US defence secretary…
Defence Minister Stephen Smith has announced the Australian Defence Force will open up full employment opportunities for women. In a decision made by Cabinet on Monday night, with the full support of the…
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