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Terms of Reference a the Reasons Why Australian Veterans Are Committing Suicide at Such High Rates

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Terms of Reference a the Reasons Why Australian Veterans Are Committing Suicide at Such High Rates 1 SENATE FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE COMMITTEE INQUIRY INTO SUICIDE BY VETERANS AND EX-SERVICE PERSONNEL Submitted by: Name withheld Terms of reference A The Reasons why Australian Veterans are Committing Suicide at Such High Rates. This term of reference acknowledges that Australian veterans are committing suicide at high rates, but provides no figures on the actual numbers of suicides. This is because neither the ADF nor DVA record actual suicides of veterans. This is a matter of serious concern for veterans, their families and in fact the Australian nation. If the US can record accurate data on suicides of its veterans, then so too can Australia. Perhaps the ADF and DVA have taken a conscious decision not to record these figures. I feel the following excerpts from an article by David Ellery in the Sydney Morning Herald, 7 June 2015, titled Alarming' rise in suicide deaths by former military personnel, are very relevant to this Inquiry, Refer: http://www.smh.com.au/national/alarming-rise-in-suicide-deaths-by-former-military- personnel-20150605-ghhfut.html Despite Defence's multibillion-dollar resources, Vice Chief of Defence Force, Vice Admiral Ray Griggs said: "What is the suicide rate amongst the ex-serving community? We just don't know ... People get very energetic and say `you should know'. Well, we'd love to know." The ADF was scrambling to plug the information black hole by working with a wide range of stakeholders, including a grassroots suicide register whose founder said his job was "speaking for the dead". Admiral Griggs, said “he did not believe claims held up that as many as 200 Afghan war veterans had committed suicide”. Mr Gray (from the Veterans Suicide Register) said his data indicated "a significant increase in suicide" at the end of ADF conflicts or deployments. "For Afghanistan you see a sharp increase from 2013 until the present. Numbers increased from an average of seven a year up to 18 in 2013, 19 in 2014 and already 13 to the end of May this year (2015)." It is notable that Vice Admiral Griggs (who is also Vice Chief of the Defence Force) said they do not know the suicide rate amongst veterans, but he then said “he did not believe claims held up that as many as 200 Afghan war veterans had committed suicide”. Vice Admiral Griggs said, “He wants a more sophisticated and mature discussion around mental health issues in general”. These comments are not at all helpful in dealing with this very important matter. Vice Admiral Griggs has supported views expressed by his Subordinate, the former Chief of Joint Health Services, Rear Admiral Robyn Walker, which I address in Terms of Reference B, below. The Veterans Suicide Register, which is a facebook site, has estimated the number of veteran suicides from reliable sources from its followers on social media to now be at least 250 since the 2 year 2000. The vast majority of these suicides are from contemporary veterans, ie. those who have served in Iraq, and Afghanistan in particular. Given the manner I which the Australian Veterans Suicide Register obtains its data on veteran suicide statistics, I consider it to be a reliable source. 41 Australian soldiers lost their lives in Afghanistan, and 261 were wounded. Therefore, the number of suicides so far among contemporary veterans is at least six times the number of soldiers killed in action by the enemy. It is also a striking feature that the vast majority of suicides are by non- commissioned personnel, ie. veterans who are not officers. Both the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts occurred during the period November 2001 to December 2012. Operational engagements with the enemy in Afghanistan finished in December 2012. Some personnel remained in Afghanistan until the end of 2013 to dismantle certain infrastructure in Tarin Kowt, and to return military assets to Australia. There is a small detachment of around 400 troops still there to provide security in Kabul. From my observations in dealing with veterans for the last five years, there are a number of reasons veterans commit suicide, including: 1. Dreadful experiences during their war time service, such as seeing their mates killed some of whom were literally blown to pieces by IED’s, and others lose their limbs from IED’s; losing their brothers in arms killed by insider attacks whereby Afghan Nation Army soldiers turned on their Australian mentors and shot them; seeing young boys sexually abused by adult men as part of the Afghan culture; seeing small innocent children killed and wounded; seeing women mistreated. 2. Lack of education to enable veterans to integrate into mainstream society after they voluntarily discharge or are discharged from the ADF. This is particularly relevant to non- commissioned personnel, ie. those who are not officers. Officers who have come through ADFA have attained tertiary qualification, free of charge, at the public’s expense while also receiving a salary during their training. ADFA is possibly the only Commonwealth instrumentality which provides such a generous training package. By contrast, training of the non-commissioned ranks during their service is primarily directed towards field skills, first aid and the operation of sophisticated weaponry to enable them to kill the enemy, but they receive no tertiary education credentials as part of their normal training program. The training of non-commissioned personnel is primarily directed at how to kill or capture the enemy. There is no demand in civilian society for this skill set. It should also be noted that those who face enemy fire are primarily personnel in the non-commissioned ranks – the same cohort of veterans who represent the greatest percentage of suicides. 3. Dealings with DVA and Comcare by veterans who have lodged claims. I believe this to be a significant factor leading to suicide of veterans and I will deal with it under other terms of reference below. 3 Terms of Reference B previous reviews of military compensation arrangements and their failings I am not familiar with previous reviews. However, on the basis of the current performance of DVA, if there have been any previous reviews, no improvement in the performance of DVA has come from the reviews. This may be an appropriate juncture to mention previous views expressed and the need for reviews of current arrangements, through this Senate Inquiry, regarding the claims assessment procedure and the rising trend in suicide among contemporary veterans. The former Commander of Joint Health Services, and ADF Surgeon General, was Rear Admiral Robyn Walker. In an ABC article on 22 April 2014, journalist Rachael Brown states Rear Admiral Walker says she has not found a link between operational deployment and suicide. I watched as Ms Walker repeated this view on an SBS Insight program. Ms Walker has been strongly criticised in social and mainstream media for expressing her views but fellow senior officers, including Vice Admiral Griggs (refer preceding hyperlink) rallied to her support. Refer: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04- 22/number-of-soldiers-committing-suicide-triples-afghan-combat-toll/5403122 The same article reports that Dr Stephen Hodson from DVA points out that suicide rates mirror those in the wider Australian Community. However, as with the comments by Rear Admiral Walker, no research findings were quoted to support his statement. In an interview with Marie Claire magazine on 9 April 2014, Rear Admiral Robyn Walker said, “post- traumatic stress disorder is a result of a “lifetime exposure” to trauma – not military service. http://www.michaelsmithnews.com/2015/03/adfs-chief-medical-officer-admiral-robyn-walker-on- ptsd-its-not-about-the-military.html In 2015 the Rear Admiral Walker was the subject of an online petition that attracted more than 8,000 signatures and hundreds of pages of comments in social and commercial media demanding her removal over her statements. If the views of Rear Admiral Robyn Walker, supported by the most senior officers of the ADF, including a media statement from the CDF (http://news.defence.gov.au/2015/03/13/a-message- from-the-australian-defence-force-senior-leadership/) are a true representation of the views of the ADF and DVA, then what hope is there for any change in attitude of either organisation towards the recognition of the extent of veteran suicides, the fact that it is a serious problem brought about by military service, and appropriate measures to deal with this serious problem. These two bodies have already indicated they will not change their views. The first step in solving a problem is to recognise there is one. I know from my personal association with veterans that their military service can lead to suicide, as can their frustration in dealings with DVA. I also commend the following article to the Committee, particularly the comments by Major General John Cantwell (Retired): http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04-23/rising-ptsd-compensation- figures-in-adf-only-the-start/5404778 4 Terms of Reference C & E Claims Administration By DVA The system involved in lodgement of claims is immensely convoluted and laden with paper work. Most veterans are not used to filling in reams of paperwork. It is a very daunting process for veterans. Furthermore, most claims invariably involve duplication of paperwork with multiple agencies. Claims can take anywhere from a year (if very lucky) to five years to process - if applicants persevere, and stay alive. There appears to have been little change in the modus operandi of DVA over the last 50 years. The following examples illustrate this: An example of a past refusal by DVA to even consider applications for serious health issues from a service related incident (peace-time) is the collision by Australian Navy destroyer HMAS Voyager with the aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne in 1964.
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