Justice Anthony Besanko of the Federal Court of Australia dismissed the defamation case brought by the former SAS corporal Ben Roberts-Smith (BRS) against three newspapers. He concluded that the mastheads had proven several of the key allegations of war crimes, including that RBS was involved in the killing of multiple unarmed Afghan civilians. This verdict is a vindication for public interest investigative journalism and we owe them our sincere gratitude as we also do to those from within BRS platoon who had the moral courage to speak out against the reprehensible behaviour of a fellow warrior.
BRS’s exploits in the battlefield, laced with what we now know were fabricated acts of valour, gave him a larger-than-life persona and earned him the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest military honour. He became the poster boy of the Australian military-industrial complex and a section of the Australian media. Following the Federal Court’s verdict, people are questioning BRS’s worthiness for the VC, although he has yet to be charged of any criminal wrongdoing.
Thankfully, rogue soldiers comprise a small segment of the Australian Defence Force; the great majority are professional, brave and morally-upstanding. They deserve our praise for looking after the security of this nation and keeping us all safe.
An important question missing in the conversation on war crimes is, what would justice look like for the families whose loved ones have been wrongfully killed? If the victims are compensated, what monetary value do we place on an Afghan’s life? Admittedly, reparations can never replace the lives of Ali Jan and others murdered, but they are, at the very least, an acknowledgment that victims were harmed and the compensations are aimed at supporting those who have suffered.
Research by The Intercept on reparations for unintentional deaths in the wars in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan by US and its allies is rather sobering. Some countries in the war coalition have devised laws and processes that make it difficult for victims to lay a claim for reparations. When compensations were paid, the value was typically trivial, dubbed as ex gratia payments without any acceptance of liability. For example, Reuters reported that in March 2014, the U.S. military paid an Afghan man just over US $1,000 to compensate for killing his civilian son in an operation near the border with Iran. Most ex-gratia payments are small – usually between US$2,500 and US$5,000. One of the condolence payments issued in 2019 was only US$131.
We hope the compensation to be paid out by the Australian Government to the Afghan victims will be fair, and executed quickly as recommended by The Brereton Report: “Where ‘there is credible information that an identified or identifiable Afghan national has been unlawfully killed’, Australia should compensate the family of the individual without waiting for the establishment of criminal liability. it is simply the right thing to do’ (p. 41)”. Justice delayed is justice denied!
The investigation of war crimes by Australia is a testament to the strength of its democracy, anchored to impeccable moral norms and principles. It is morally obliged to call out war crimes committed anywhere on earth, including supporting the Palestinians call for the International Criminal Court to investigate killing by Israel of journalist and civilians, many of who were children.
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