Our military harbours rapists. Where is the political outrage?
Both Coalition and Labor politicians always repeat the same line about national security – that it is the government's No.1 priority to keep Australians secure.
But the female personnel of the armed forces are not guaranteed personal safety, even as they devote their professional lives to protecting ours.
Such is the only possible conclusion from reports in this masthead by Nick McKenzie and Garry McNab about the prevalence of sexual assault and other forms of misconduct against women in the military, and the ADF's ineptitude and apparent unwillingness to address it.
The stories told by the women who came forward will be wearily familiar to many survivors – a combination of institutional omerta and victim-blaming.
The women were introduced into male-dominated and sometimes openly misogynistic professional environments – in the army and the air force – and expected to fend for themselves.
When they were sexually assaulted, they were pressured to stay quiet or treated as a nuisance for speaking up.
In one case, a female army officer cadet was warned her career would be compromised if she made a complaint. As she put it: 'To get some poor guy in trouble would not wash.'
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West Australian
5 hours ago
- West Australian
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- Perth Now
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West Australian
6 hours ago
- West Australian
Productivity Commission says Australia can weather tariffs, but warns a global trade war would have 'serious consequences'
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