Military leaders a casualty of woke culture over Brereton report

I don’t often agree with Peter van Onselen but his piece in The Weekend Australian (“War crimes report: Punishing the innocent is a disgrace”, 28-29/11) should be compulsory reading. It is apparent our military leaders have fallen victim to the woke culture permeating our society.

If Chief of the Defence Force Angus Campbell believed he would garner the support of the general population with his unilateral action in recommending the removal of citations to the soldiers who served in Afghanistan, then he appears to be sadly mistaken. Since his recommendation became public I am yet to see any feedback in letters to the editor, or indeed in articles written by journalists, in support of this removal.

Van Onselen appeals to the Prime Minister to counter this recommendation by General Campbell to the Governor-General. The Prime Minister has said a lot this year about Australians working together. He needs to take note of the wishes of Australians and refuse to support Campbell’s recommendation.

James Simpson, Cherrybrook, NSW

I read with disbelief that Russia’s Foreign Ministry released a statement regarding the alleged atrocities of Australian SAS, effectively saying it did not think Australia would prosecute and our credibility in world affairs had been “shattered”.

In the 1980s, Russia was committed to a high-tempo, all-out war in Afghanistan. The civil population, in particular, suffered badly at the hands of poorly trained troops and the unrestricted use of air support, especially from ground attack helicopters and air-dropped anti-personnel mines. The Russian war correspondent Gennady Bocharov described a number of atrocities against enemy soldiers and civilians. None of these were properly investigated or prosecuted.

It is the height of hypocrisy for Russia to make an official comment on credibility and atrocities given its track record. Australia should be proud of the ADF’s achievements in Afghanistan and if some individuals have committed crimes, then our system of law and order will ensure they are charged and tried in an open court of law.

Tony Clark, Gawler, SA

I read and hear with incredulity about China and Russia going public with anti-Australian statements about the alleged war crimes perpetrated by Australian forces in Afghanistan.

Readers should do some basic research and learn of the horrors inflicted by the Russians with their absolutely brutal treatment of the people of Afghanistan in the Soviet-Afghanistan war, from 1979-1989. There have been countless proven cases of indiscriminate bombing campaigns, mass rapes, executions, assassinations and even the use of chemical weapons. Some reports have up to two million Afghans killed.

And the Chinese? Hardly without blood on their hands, either, be it in Tiananmen Square in June 1989, where several thousand civilians were reportedly killed by the PLA. There were even reports of tanks deliberately running down — then reversing over — the bodies of protesters. The quote “Truth is the first casualty in war” was never more apt. And, in the case of China, forget about “truth” when it comes to any civilian protests.

Roy Stall, Mt Claremont, WA