(Transcript from SBS World News Radio)
A long-awaited report has recommended a royal commission into sexual abuse allegations at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra.
The Defence Abuse Response Taskforce, or DART, report found a significant number of serious allegations of abuse had never been investigated and individuals had not been brought to account.
Peggy Giakoumelos reports.
(Click on the audio tab above to hear the full report)
The taskforce was formed in 2012 to examine about 2,400 historical allegations of abuse within the Australian Defence Force, in some cases recommending victims be compensated.
One outstanding issue remains a series of sexual assaults on female cadets at the Defence Force Academy in the mid 1990s.
Australia's Chief of Army David Morrison has not commented on the specifics of the report.
But he told the ABC's 7:30 program the ADF is committed to righting some of the wrongs of the past.
"I can assure you and your viewers that the ADF leadership team, headed by the two CDFs, David Hurley and Mark Binskin, the vice chiefs, the service chiefs, are absolutely committed to trying to atone for some of the dark issues in the ADF's past. The DART has done a great job in raising the profile of those men and women who have suffered at the hands of others in our Defence Force and the leadership team of the ADF know that it is on our watch to do something about it."
The DART report is recommending a Royal Commission because it says many serious allegations of abuse were never investigated and the Defence Force doesn't have capacity to deal with the allegations.
A royal commission would look into abuse between 1986 - when ADFA was established - until the present day.
The report found at least 36 women were abused between 1991 and 1998, most of whom were under 20 at the time and some as young as 17.
Allegations range from indecent assault to rape and were perpetrated mainly by male cadets.
Sex Discrimination Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick led a review into the ADFA Skype sex scandal.
She says while it's up to the government to decide whether to go ahead with a Royal Commission, the needs of victims have to be taken into account.
"Whatever mechanism is decided whether a Royal Commission or something else, that we don't retraumatise victims of abuse. Because I meet victims of abuse in the military in my current work. For many of them they've moved past this chapter, they just want to move forward. So they are the competing considerations and whether or not a royal commission would actually add something additional to what has already been done as well."
The Vice President of the Defence Force Welfare Association Les Bienkiewicz agrees a Royal Commission may be needed.
But he wants the general public to know that there isn't a widespread culture of abuse within the ADF.
"There's a great loss of confidence that this might cause by the general public to the ADF as a whole and we think that's quite sad. And while we welcome a royal commission and fully accept that there's been many incidences of abuse in the ADF over many years, we've also got the view that there's actually no systemic or inbred culture of abuse within the Defence Force and we shouldn't lose sight of the fact that the vast majority of ADF personnel act honourably and they share our disgust over the unacceptable behaviour of a few. We're very pleased that the reports has been released and if it needs to go to a royal commission, well then so be it."
Defence Minister David Johnston says the government will consider all the recommendations including the possibility of setting up a royal commission.
