The Chief of the Defence Force has paused any internal disciplinary measures for senior army officers who failed to prevent alleged war crimes in Afghanistan, as the ADF waits for an official external investigation to be completed — something that could take years.
General Angus Campbell's move last year followed an edict from Defence Minister Peter Dutton that the ADF wait for lengthy criminal investigations to conclude before commanders faced any internal military consequences for wrongdoing that occurred under their command.
According to Freedom of Information documents obtained by the Australian newspaper, a further 21 personnel who served in Afghanistan have been told they should "learn from their experiences".
The decision comes despite 17 lower-ranked soldiers being issued termination notices for "alleged failure to meet ADF expectations and values" following the landmark 2020 Brereton report.
Several of the soldiers issued termination notices were later dismissed, some were allowed to continue serving, while others were medically discharged. However the ADF has never specified precise numbers.
In July last year, General Campbell wrote to the Chief of Army, Lieutenant General Rick Burr, saying the fact alleged war crimes occurred under officers from troop to task-group-commander level "concerns me", while acknowledging "command accountability is my responsibility".
General Campbell added that "potential administrative actions" against seven serving and former officers would be suspended until the Office of the Special Investigator (OSI) concluded its investigation into the alleged crimes identified by Justice Paul Brereton.
"My decision to suspend potential administrative action means that these officers will still be able to continue their careers in the army, which may include currently planned or future promotions, posting selections and changes to service category," General Campbell wrote to the Chief of Army.
The Defence Chief said he had decided not to pursue administrative action against 19 officers because alleged war crimes on their watch "occurred so infrequently" that a "detectable pattern of behaviour" could not be identified.
His letter in July 2021 reveals General Campbell had encouraged those implicated in command failures to continue to serve and had instructed them to "learn from this experience".
A further two officers were also encouraged to "learn from their experience", despite numbers of incidents under their command "that may have given rise to a potentially detectable pattern of behaviour".
One month earlier, the Defence Minister wrote to General Campbell saying it was his "strong view" that the criminal investigations by the OSI "must take precedence over other disciplinary actions you are considering".
The released documents were prepared ahead of a July 30, 2021, Defence Department plan promising "transformational reform" to "restore the moral authority, trust, confidence and respect essential to achieving the Defence mission".
Assistant Defence Minister Andrew Hastie, a special forces veteran of the Afghan conflict, declined to answer specific questions about the move when asked by reporters in Perth.
"The Brereton implementation plan was released last year and uploaded on the Defence website on the 30th of July and I refer you to that on any questions regarding Defence's response to the Brereton report and what they're doing to remediate any outstanding issues," Mr Hastie said.
Independent senator and former naval officer Rex Patrick has hit out at the decision, comparing it to the Russian military's handling of war crimes.
"Officers are responsible for the professionalism of their troops. That officers commanding units conducting 'bloodings' are not held to account is a disgrace," Senator Patrick wrote on social media.
"Peter Dutton appears more comfortable with Russian military standards than Australian."
