Senator Lambie Calls for Full Implementation of Veteran Suicide Royal Commission Recommendations

Al like to make a contribution I would like to acknowledge the chair of the royal commission into defense and Veteran suicide Mr Nick CIS and his fellow Commissioners Dr Peggy Brown and the honorable James Douglas I thank them for their work for their empathy and for delivering a port that will make real change and Lasting change hopefully as long as our government can find its courage with both hands and Implement their recommendations in full in full not a pieace military picking exercise that is run or influenced by defense to keep the top us or their mates and a job defense's Mission and purpose is to defend Australia in its national interests and to advance Australia's security and prosperity but how can we do that effectively unless we care for our veterans when they are in service and when they leave I called for a role commissioning my first speech in the senate in 2014 and in the years that followed we called on the Australian public to back Us in the fight and millions of Australians had our backs we ran ads in marginal seats we organized rallies and we started petitions but I was just adding my voice to a fight that had already been going on for years the first calls for a raw commissioning into veterans came from veterans in the early 1980s by the early 2000s the parents of veterans had started drawing talk outlines of their dead Sons outside the Department of Veterans Affairs offices in 2019 an army of mothers fathers veterans and their families were no longer asking for a royal commission they were now demanding it and in 2019 these mothers came to CRA to knock directly and looked directly in the eyes of the doors of power the morison government suggested a national commissioner someone appointed by the government who would have no power to compel Witnesses or documents what a waste the national RSL and The Usual Suspects backed in the idea of a national commissioner and said that there was no need for a royal commission nothing to see here at least nothing that they could have had control over and I'm calling out the national president of the irsl Greg melik today you did nothing to stand us up for us we've asked you to resign for months now resign these mothers and other veterans had been warned that they would be resisted and were given full support from the Vietnam veterans who had been living with dva's poor record supporting Veterans for years finally on the 8th of July 2021 the morison government announced a moral commission into defense and Veteran suicide it was a victory for all those mothers those veterans and those families the RO the raw commission's work had just begun there was relief but there was also dread could each one of these Australians would now have to revisit their trauma when they were told they historic when they had to retell their stories to the Commissioners in the interim report the Commissioners noted that there had been numerous reports and inquiries done since 2000 they are that are relevant to the topics of suicide and sud sity among serving and ex serving ADF members they identified over 57 previous reports and more than 750 recommendations while acknowledging that many of these reports and inquiries were about discreet topics the Commissioners noted their dismay the lack of response by the Australian government previous recommendations I share that dismay and the lack of action as do veterans R across the country when the raw commission was established there were at least, 1600 deaths by Suicide between 97 and 2020 that we know of that's more than 20 times the number killed in active duty over roughly the same amount of time these numbers do not include serving and ex serving members who deaths were not officially recorded as the suicide I'm aware of cases where veterans have ended their lives in car accidents making a last ditch saf for so any life insurance they may have had could still be claimed by their families on August the 11th the Commissioners released their interim report and the number one recommendation was harmonizing the veteran compensation and Rehabilitation legislation the commission's made it quite clear that Australia's veterans compensation and Rehabilitation system was too complicated that it impacted on mental on the mental health of some veterans both serving and ex serving ADF members and was at times a contributing factor to Veterans ending their own lives I think you would be hard pressed to find a veteran that didn't agree I remember fighting my way through the dark forestal rules and regulations with a very dark isolating place I have to say the legislation to harmonize the compensation is a little late but I'll let it a little late than never Minister KO I do believe is trying to act quickly on this and that legislation should be closed and ready for Parliament although I'm sure it won't be perfect there is no choice but to move forward and trust that the minister will smooth out any bumps along the road and I can assure you I'll be holding him accountable and I'll be making aware of them as soon as I am the second recommendation was to eliminate the backlog of claims on this I have to say that hovin f is working hard to get those resolved despite some claims moving at a faster Pace there are still others lagging behind as one Advocate put it to me it's a patchwork that's because some of these claims fall under multiple pieces of legislation the harmonization will hopefully help alleviate this but for some people who have literally been waiting for years this cannot come soon enough as you can imagine I have spent a great deal of time thinking about how Departments of Veterans Affairs and defense charged with the care of veterans has so utterly failed to support these Australians who were prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for their country it's a problem with the culture a culture that reflex reflexive reflexively protects the institution instead of protecting its people in September 2023 soci prevention way commissioner Caris called out this culture two years into a raw commission the defense established M was still dragging its feet commissioner CIS told the assembled journalists at the national Press Club that veterans were still being driven to Suicide two years after the raw commission was launched in Mr cis's words and I quote Defenders approach to investigating and Reporting on suicides has progressed at a snail's pace end quote a pace most veterans would be aware of commissioner carus also called for an enduring powerful independent oversight body near needed to make sure the government agencies and the Defense Force prioritize the long-term reforms necessary to tackle the veteran suicide crisis commissioner CIS also reminded us that the Defense Force had failed to take a damning 2016 report into abuse bullying and harassment as a wakeup call to lift its game it's troubling to imagine s that such Behavior persists in any modern day workpl he said in my view it's not just troubling it goes to the root of the cultural problem within defense instead of responding to criticism with a oh what can we do better attitude defense closes ranks pulls up the jawbridge and says nothing to see here nothing to see here three years later and we're still nothing to see here commissioner CIS and his fellow Commissioners did not expect to be stonewalled when they ask defense for documents but that's exactly what happened even with the Roy commissioning going on defense is still holding on to documents that this is what I mean about a problem of culture within defense take the Inspector General of the Australian Defense Force the radf this agency is essential is essent essentially the military justice system within defense it was set up 20 years ago and it hasn't had one damn audit done on it not one when I pushed for the Australian National AIT office to do an audit the secretary of the defense Greg moratti picked up the phone had chat to the Australian National Audit office and then they decided they weren't going to do that that's how not independent your Australian National AIT office is today it is is not independent because it is taking its orders from Greg from laurati from Greg laati that's what it's doing so I pushed hard and I went over the top of him and thank goodness the governor of the day listened to me and actually gave me a review good one so the Minister of Defense defense has had this report now for 5 months 5 months three months it took to do the report he's now had it for five months won't release that damn report so on the same on on one foot you're saying we care about veterans on the other side saying oh we don't want in our back that report it's not important to the suicides well I'll tell you what it is part of the suicides that have been going on since it started 20 years ago 20 years ago when Australians joined the Australian Defense Force they give up many rights and Liberties enjoyed by most austrin citizens they agree to do what they're told they live where they're told they educate their children where they're told to educate them all in defense of our nation they voluntarily accept the risk of service which can often mean physical or mental injury or both and sometimes they end up with a moral injury all they ask for in return is that their Nation looks after them during and after their service is that really too much to ask we cannot let this rule commission go the way of the reports and inquiries that preceded them it cannot just sit on a shelf Gathering dust War defense establishment moves on and nothing changes although as I have acknowledged the DVA is trying to change but I agree with the Commissioners the DVA and its current current form cannot deliver the well-being support our veterans need we need a national commissioner with strong powers to compel Witnesses and to advocate for veterans and deal with their transition into civilian life just because a veteran has a physical injury it doesn't mean they are less capable of service you can't tell me that just because you've lost a limb you couldn't work as an admin Clark that's rubbish excuse an excuse to throw them out instead of finding reasons to keep them in that is half the battle and a battle and a battle that needs to be won the world is more unpredictable than ever and we have never needed a stronger Defense Force than we do today but veterans are leaving and wants to join who would want to join an organization that treats its Workforce with such contempt I call on the minister the government and defense leaders to honor the work of the commission and to honor the sacrifice of all veterans and Mothers and Fathers and Families who have worked so hard to make this happen don't just honor them on anac day honor and care for them 365 days a year putting it up quite simply we owe them and we will ow always owe them and dedication to them must much match their dedication and service to this country I seek leave to continue my remarks