Editorial
Greatest threat to our soldiers cannot be our own military
From 1985 to 2022, there were 2007 confirmed deaths from suicide among Australian Defence Force members. From 2011 to 2021, an average of 78 serving or ex-serving members died by suicide annually. That is three every fortnight. On average then, by year’s end, another six people who have served in our armed forces will have died by their own hand.
The federal government this week released its response to the Royal Commission into Defence and Veterans Suicide. There were 122 recommendations, of which the government accepted 104, with 17 under review.
An agency is to be set up to seek reforms that prevent suicides, and within the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, an agency will be created to help with the transition from military life to civilian life.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, in announcing the government’s response, said: “We can’t bring back those that we’ve lost, but we can fight to stem this terrible epidemic and we can strive to bring it to an end.”
Defence Minister Richard Marles declared that any suicide, including that of veterans and serving Defence personnel, was a national tragedy.
Indeed, Minister. In the past few decades, Australia has lost more soldiers and ex-soldiers to suicide than it has from defending our shores or fighting in foreign lands.
It cannot, and it must not be, the case any longer that the greatest enemy to a soldier’s life is the system to which they devoted themselves. Enough is enough.
The royal commission’s comments are damning: “The issue has long been recognised, with multiple inquiries over the years.”
A suicide-monitoring report of ADF members, past and present, conducted by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, has found despite these multiple inquiries, “that the suicide rate for ex-serving males has remained relatively constant for almost 20 years”.
Put another way, men who were formerly in the ADF are 42 per cent more likely to die by suicide than those who did not serve. Those in the service were 30 per cent more likely to die by suicide than civilians.
Former serving women were twice as likely to die by suicide than non-military women.
The figures the commission cites are, as it acknowledges, only approximate, and thus not comprehensive. The number of suicide deaths of Vietnam veterans, for example, is not included.
The government says it also will establish an inquiry into sexual violence in the ADF. Its terms of reference and timing are yet to be determined.
Aligned with that, any member convicted of sexual and related offences in the military or civilian criminal systems will be discharged and anyone disciplined over sexual assault, harassment or offences such as stalking will be dismissed, subject to the civil standard of the balance of probabilities.
This is a sensible step and again suggests the military may at last seek to properly protect the people who serve in it.
As the commission notes of the suicide deaths: “This is a tragic and needless loss of life … These are deaths of people who chose to defend and protect our nation. Suicide rates among ADF members have remained relatively unchanged over the past 20 years.”
In the dry language of the report, that last observation evokes condemnation, not only for the appalling lack of action from which it was derived but because of this: if nothing has changed over two decades, then it is because of bureaucracy’s shrug that the situation is to be dismissed, having become normal.
The deaths appear to be put down as collateral damage. This is shameful and makes a mockery of the motto Lest We Forget.
The commission estimates that for each death, research shows that at least 135 people who knew the person have been exposed to the trauma of the loss.
Thus, one person’s death is not an island of itself. It flows out into society. The government’s response is welcome, if overdue, for those suffering. Now the work must begin.
If you are a current or former ADF member, or a relative, and need counselling or support, you can contact the Defence All-Hours Support Line on 1800 628 036 or Open Arms on 1800 011 046. Crisis support is also available from Lifeline on 13 11 14.
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