Plea for royal commission after veteran son takes his own life
Eight resolutions from The Daily Telegraph’s Save Our Heroes Summit will be put to the federal Veterans’ Minister as pressure mounts on Scott Morrison to call a royal commission into the veteran suicide crisis after NSW backed an inquiry on Wednesday. READ THE RESOLUTIONS
NSW
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- Dad takes his own life after defence rejects pleas for help
- ‘It’s vital’: Veteran backs Save Our Heroes Summit
The NSW government has thrown its support behind growing calls for a royal commission into the veteran suicide crisis after six grieving mothers of dead heroes pressed the Prime Minister to call the inquiry in Canberra on Wednesday.
Acting NSW Veterans’ Affairs Minister Geoff Lee told The Daily Telegraph’s Save Our Heroes Summit in Parliament House on Wednesday: “The system is broken. The NSW government is committed to supporting this call for a royal commission. Clearly we must do better.”
His call was echoed by Australia’s most decorated hero Ben Roberts-Smith who told the gathering: “It’s been a long time coming. It is something that is needed.”
The Daily Telegraph Save Our Heroes Summit was called to give voice to six courageous mothers whose sons took their own lives after leaving the Defence Force.
They also met with Prime Minister Scott Morrison for more than an hour to tell of their loss — a grief that has been shared by more than 500 families of other Diggers who have killed themselves since 2001.
Julie-Ann Finney, who has collected 250,000 signatures calling for a Royal Commission since her Navy poster-boy son Dave took his own life in February, said the Prime Minister told her he “has not ruled out a Royal Commission”.
She welcomed the NSW Government’s backing and said: “I am really glad they are going to support a Royal Commission and acknowledge that more needs to be done.”
An emotional Ms Finney said she did not want another mother to have to suffer what she had after her son called for help.
The response from the Australian Defence Force was “we will ruin your career and we will get rid of you,” she said.
“They signed up to serve our country,” she said.
“The Australian Defence Force has taken Australia’s bravest. They were not broken people.”
But mother Glenda Weston said their sons came home broken.
Her son private Bradley Carr took his own life on Anzac Day. “It was not a coincidence he chose that day.
“He went away to fight a war and he was still fighting it in his head when he came home.”
She was joined in her grief by Nikki Jamieson, the mother of private Daniel Garforth, Colleen Pillen, mother of private Michael Powers and Jan Hewitt, mother of private Brock Hewitt.
MORE FROM THE SUMMIT
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GALLYER: FACES OF THE FORGOTTEN
Ms Hewitt, whose son Brock died this year, said: “We are here being the voices of our sons because they are not here.”
Former Major General and ex-senator Jim Molan said: “If we are going to fix this problem we have got to know the facts.
“If there is time to strike, the time to strike is now.”
Keynote speaker James Brown, former NSW RSL President, agreed and sent a message to the PM: “The opportunity is now, you’ve never had so much support behind you to fix this system.”
He said what was required was strong, decisive leadership and a Royal Commission.
Mr Brown thanked Mr Morrison for meeting the mothers.
“Now we need your strong and sustained leadership on this issue for the rest of your Prime Ministership,” he said.
“Australia’s living veterans need your help.
“Stay home from that next overseas commemoration service you get invited to.
“The veterans you need to hear from are in Holsworthy, not Hamel. If you want to connect with the veteran’s community don’t fly to the Western Front, drive to Western Sydney.”
Resolutions from the summit, which will be put to federal Veterans Affair Minister Darren Chester, included an overhaul of complicated benefits schemes and an end to the cruel practice of unleashing lawyers on vulnerable veterans.
PRESSURE MOUNTS ON PRIME MINISTER
Addressing the summit on Wednesday, former army officer James Brown also said it was high time for the federal government to take the helm on veteran suicide.
“The veteran sector is crying out for strong and sustained national leadership. A lack of leadership is at the heart of everything we’re talking about today.”
Ben Roberts-Smith, Australia’s most decorated veteran applauded the state’s pledge but said a formal announcement was critical.
“I think it’s fantastic. It’s a long time coming, it is something that has needed support from the state governments to get the federal government to finally act on it. The issue needs to be dealt with. We need a royal commission to find out what is going on.”
Julie Anne Finney called on the Prime Minister to take real action.
“I’m really glad they’re going to support the royal commission and have acknowledged that more needs to be done. It’s awesome but now I hope the federal government is going to follow suit.”
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Karen Bird, whose son, Afghanistan veteran Jesse Bird, died two years ago, broke and consumed by “a loss of hope”, said the help he should have been afforded was withheld from him.
The 32-year-old had pleaded with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs for financial assistance and five days later he took his own life surrounded by paperwork from the DVA notifying him his claim for permanent impairment, which he had been fighting for two years, had been rejected.
He had warned the department he was suicidal and under severe financial stress. Ten days after he died, the department transferred $4551 to Mr Bird’s account.
Ms Bird has thrown her support behind the Telegraph’s Save Our Heroes summit at NSW Parliament House.
“The purposefully complex claims process drained Jesse of any hope of help and a better future,” she said.
“There must be a complete overall of the needlessly complex legislative framework that currently hampers the streamlining of veteran entitlements and impedes DVA from acting responsibly in their duty of care towards veterans and their families — with particular attention to be given to those who are the most vulnerable frontline combat personnel.”
At the heart of Mr Bird’s case was the department’s rule that accepted mental health conditions had to be “permanent and stable” before compensation would be granted.
Medical assessments had deemed that Mr Bird’s conditions did not meet this threshold.
Ms Bird said she was deeply troubled by Defence and the DVA’s responses to an ongoing inquest in Victoria into her son’s death.
“The unbridled use of public money to defend and protect the brands of the ADF/DVA equates to an abuse of power,” she said.
She has called for Defence and DVA to work together in a way which has eluded the two organisations but has been recommended by various reviews.
“If they don’t, as they haven’t this century, the end result is what we have today — and the human cost is growing,” Ms Bird said.
The summit will give a voice to five bereaved mothers who have called for a royal commission into more than 500 military suicides.
Virgin Australia is flying the veterans’ mothers to Sydney while the AHA will provide their accommodation.
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Originally published as Plea for royal commission after veteran son takes his own life