More broadly, this case shows how hard it is to use defamation law to repair any perceived damage to your reputation. Once a case begins, you never can control what will be said in court.
Investigating senior officers, and where appropriate, taking action against them, is an important part of restoring the reputation of the Australian military abroad.
University of Canberra Professorial Fellow Michelle Grattan and University of Canberra Assistant Professor Caroline Fisher discuss the week in politics.
Scott Morrison has always put the military on an extremely high pedestal. When some of those on that pedestal are found to have done appalling things, the shock is doubly great.
This might appear a radical suggestion, but military units have been moved, shuffled, re-branded, disbanded and reactivated frequently throughout Australia’s history.
When an atrocity is committed in war — and the army fails to respond — it is due to a moral failure of command. It’s time for the army to show the same courage as those veterans who have spoken out.