Teddy Sheean VC snub is ‘un-Australian’, says military honours expert

Denying Tasmanian war hero Teddy Sheean a Victoria Cross is “unacceptable and un-Australian”, a military honours expert says.

The push continues for Ordinary Seaman Teddy Sheean to be awarded a retrospective Victoria Cross.

THE man tasked with forming Australia’s Defence Honours Awards and Appeals Tribunal says it is “unacceptable” and “un-Australian” to deny Tasmanian war hero Edward “Teddy” Sheean the country’s highest military honour.

Retired brigadier Kevin O’Brien, of Queensland, who started the tribunal in 2008 and later served as a board member, yesterday laid bare his astonishment over the Federal Government’s ruling against awarding Teddy Sheean the Victoria Cross.

“This is a travesty. Teddy Sheean is a hero and the Government should accept the recommendation of its own panel of experts,” Mr O’Brien said.

“It is unacceptable and un-Australian that the Government would ignore its own panel of experts and deny a young hero the recognition he deserves.”

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Mr O’Brien’s comments come after Chief of the Defence Force Angus Campbell wrote to Prime Minister Scott Morrison to “strongly advise” against recognising Sheean for his actions in World War II, when he strapped himself to a cannon on a sinking ship to shoot down an enemy plane.

Retired brigadier Kevin O’Brien.

In his letter to the Prime Minister, General Campbell acknowledged the young sailor’s bravery, but warned the request to grant him a VC could open the floodgates to a “swath of additional claims for retrospective military honours” from “all past conflicts”.

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Mr O’Brien said that argument was flawed.

“The fact is that no flood of applications has been received at the tribunal since the retrospective awards for the Battle of Long Tan [1966],” he said.

“In fact the number of appeals is falling. In any case there is not going to be any similar cases for the navy.

“Ship’s guns are all automated these days and Sheean’s action can never be repeated. The tribunal already has a sunset clause – appeals can only be made for World War II and later.”

Sunday Tasmanian cartoonist Polly’s take on this week’s events in the Teddy Sheean VC push.

Speaking on 2GB radio on Friday, Mr Morrison said: “There’s no doubt that the bravery and the story of Teddy Sheean is truly remarkable.”

Mr O’Brien said it seemed contradictory to express vocal support for Teddy Sheean’s actions while denying him the VC.

Mr O’Brien last week started an online petition calling on the Government to follow the tribunal’s recommendations and award Teddy Sheean the VC. As of last night, it had more than 17,000 signatures – a figure Mr O’Brien said was “doubling every day”.

The petition can be found here