In the cult movie, “The Blues Brothers” there is a car chase; possibly the best car chase ever filmed. Such is the chaos being wrought by Jake and Elwood Blues on the freeways leading into Chicago that just about every police car in the force is out on the road determined to capture them. At a critical point in the chase and with the reputation of the force on the line, the officer in the radio room issues the instruction, “The use of unnecessary force has been approved.”
When the first of the allegations of cruelty by Australian naval personnel against asylum seekers was reported by the ABC, I was sceptical. That is not what we do, I thought. That can’t be true. But subsequent to those alleged New Year’s Day events, a claim surfaced that there existed within the Navy a group linked to the Australian Defence League, an online racist group opposed to Muslim immigration into Australia. The Navy is currently investigating one of its members who posted a comment on a friend’s Facebook page stating: “I’m about to head out today to deal with these f—ers.” This was first reported by Bianca Hill in The Age on 26th January.
Then came Michael Bachelard’s article in the Age and Sydney Morning Herald newspapers on February 6th and the interview with Yousif Ibrahim Fasher in Indonesia, which gave credibility to the allegation that Navy personnel had mistreated asylum seekers. That article reignited this shadowy matter and gave more weight to the ABC’s original story.
Let us put the claims by Fasher, who continues to allege that Navy personnel forced some asylum seekers to put their hands on hot pipes to one side for the moment and look more closely at something else he claimed. Fasher has stated that on the last two nights of the tow back, the two Australian Navy Vessels turned their lights off. Fasher’s claim is corroborated by Abdullah Ahmed, from Eritrea who was also on the same boat. An Australian Navy source has since told Bachelard this would never happen, that it is against maritime law. Indeed it is! But two men were astute enough to notice that it did. So why would a naval vessel turn its lights off at night unless, as in wartime, it did not want to be detected? If it did not want to be detected, then it is reasonable to surmise it was probably sailing in Indonesian waters and knew so at the time.
When one puts these instances together and places them alongside some of the quite heartless actions of Immigration Minister Scott Morrison, a conspiracy theory develops; one that could be interpreted by some as suggesting a culture exists within naval communications vaguely reminiscent of that scene from ‘The Blues Brothers”. The release of footage taken from an orange boat seemingly being towed by a naval vessel released by the ABC on 7th February reinforces that view.
Secretly, the Abbott government knows it is in trouble. It knows it is vulnerable on the issue of naval engagement with asylum seekers so what does it do? It tries to divert attention by focusing on the unions where it believes Labor is vulnerable. It announces a Royal Commission into Union corruption.
A recent survey suggested that 60% of Australians think our government should be tougher on asylum seekers arriving by boat. This survey, if accurate, would give government plenty of incentive to accelerate its push back policies without the need to deflect attention. If it had nothing to be concerned about, why try to create a diversion?
Defence Minister David Johnston’s dribble about Navy personnel being maliciously maligned and his call for an investigation into the ABC was melodramatic to say the least. His claim that he had initially stayed silent because he was so angry is the stuff of soap operas. History is littered with examples of abuse being committed by those deemed above suspicion, e.g. the Catholic Church, the Salvation Army, the Police; so why not our Defence forces, and specifically the Navy?
One thing politicians never seem to learn is that cover-ups are always uncovered sooner or later. Whatever is going on inside the Department of Immigration and Border Protection and its communications with naval vessels patrolling the Timor Sea, the truth will eventually come out. Officer cadets training in our Defence Forces have already been shown up behaving abusively towards their own at Duntroon, therefore is it reasonable to think that within such a culture some Australian Navy personnel could wantonly inflict burns on asylum seekers? I think yes. Sooner or later, a whistle-blower will step up and blow this story out of the water. Nothing stays hidden forever. Let us not forget the disgraceful ‘children overboard’ affair.
What we are witnessing here is a classic re-run of deception and denial so prevalent during the term of the Howard government. It constitutes illegal use of our defence forces for the purposes of political gain. That they have the temerity to announce a Royal Commission into the Trade Unions to deflect attention is not only an abuse of the democratic process but a callous confirmation that they will do anything and say anything to remain in power.
These pathetic suggestions by government members that we are somehow unpatriotic if we dare call into question the integrity of our Navy personnel is so cowardly. These people who, by placing the burden of their own decisions on others to carry out, are the real cowards. They are the disloyal ones; disloyal to the oath they swear when appointed to office.
An independent inquiry is needed to determine what happened on New Year’s Day, but don’t hold your breath waiting. Meanwhile, the Navy is no more above suspicion than the politicians who command them.
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