Military ban on ‘woke’ teas lifted

Richard ­Marles has repudiated Peter Dutton’s war on ‘wokeness’ in the military, tearing up his ­Liberal predecessor’s ban on ‘rainbow morning teas’.

Defence Minister Richard Marles. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Mariuz

Defence Minister Richard ­Marles has repudiated Peter Dutton’s war on “wokeness” in the military, tearing up his ­Liberal predecessor’s ban on “rainbow morning teas”.

Chief of the Defence Force Angus Campbell and ­Defence Department secretary Greg ­Moriarty announced the move in an all-staff email on Tuesday, declaring diversity and inclusion were key to the organisation’s success.

“We recognise a diverse workforce supported by an ­inclusive culture is essential to Defence’s capability and effectiveness,” they said.

Mr Dutton last year ordered Defence to abandon its “woke agenda” after it hosted morning teas marking the International Day Against Homophobia, ­Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia.

“I’ve been very clear to the chiefs that I will not tolerate ­discrimination. But we are not pursuing a woke agenda,” the Liberal former defence minister told Nine newspapers at the time.

“Our task is to build up the morale in the Australian ­Defence Force and these woke agendas don’t help.”

Australian Defence Force members and Defence public servants had, until the ban, been allowed to wear rainbow-­coloured clothing to celebrate the May 17 IDAHOBIT Day.

General Campbell and Mr Moriarty said Mr Marles had overturned the ban, while ­commanders would also be able to authorise participation in “Wear it Purple Day” for LGBTIQA+ awareness, and “RU OK Day” for suicide ­prevention.

“To demonstrate our commitment to all of our people we will consider a wider range of events of significance and importance for 2023,” General Campbell and Mr Moriarty said.

“We look forward to working with all of you to build capability through fostering a diverse and inclusive workforce to deliver on Defence’s mission.”

The decision comes ­as ­Defence struggles to recruit ­sufficient personnel to operate its ships and submarines, and meet future strategic requirements. The change is vindication for General Campbell, who has long pursued pro-diversity policies within Defence, and recently had his term extended by Mr Marles by two years.

A senior army officer said Mr Dutton’s “woke” bans were “emblematic of his inclination to use Defence to score cheap political points, even when that meant wasting Defence resources and creating entirely unnecessary distractions”.

But a former senior army commander said Mr Marles’ ruling was about symbolism rather than substance. “I reckon that of all the ­important things to be acting on, this is not in the top 10,” the former officer said.