DEFENCE LIVES MATTER

Petition Reason

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Reforms to the Redress of Grievance and Defence inquiry processes are urgently needed. Currently they are seriously flawed, and often result in significant mental trauma and reputational harm to serving ADF members. Defence Inquiries are not bound by rules of evidence or legal technicalities. Witnesses can and do provide false testimony that is then protected by legal privilege. Defence Inquiry officers are not constrained by the fundamental concepts of justice and equality. Most are not legally trained and some have only ever undertaken four days of non-mandatory training in how to conduct an inquiry. These processes are supposed to be timely but most cases drag on for years, prolonging the mental trauma to the ADF member. Their anxiety is compounded by feeling victimised. Those who succeed in arguing their case, find their situation unchanged because too much time has passed and there is no policy for corrective action. ADF members will carry unresolved grievances into life beyond service which will impact the Government's efforts to realistically reduce the number of suicides currently plaguing the ADF veteran community.

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Petition Request

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We therefore ask the House to support changes to the Defence (Inquiry) Regulations 2018 so that Defence Inquiries are subject to legal technicalities, rules of evidence, principles of open justice and common law; Defence Inquiry officers undertake legal training; witness testimony taken under oath/affirmation; introduce an appeal process outside the Chain of Command and corrective action policy to ensure procedural fairness, and access to genuine mediation for ADF members to resolve workplace complaints.

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Signature count:3015

Closing date for signatures:10 February 2021 11:59 PM (AEST) (Closed)

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