Robert McClelland (Barton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House:

(1)

notes:

(a)

the vital role that ADF personnel played in enforcing the Armistice for the Korean War, between 28 July 1953 and 19 April 1956;

(b)

the professionalism and courage displayed by those personnel in dangerous circumstances, promoting the furtherance of Australia’s national interest;

(c)

the findings of the Post-Armistice Korean Service Review (the Review), which stated under Recommendations 7B and 7C that veterans of this service should be awarded the Australian General Service Medal and Returned from Active Service Badge;

(d)

the critical role that adequate recognition of service plays for the morale, retention rates and recruitment of current ADF personnel and the need to improve the transparency and reviewability of the medal system’s rule-making, as acknowledged by Recommendation 8B of the Review; and

(e)

the moral obligation of providing all veterans with the support and recognition they deserve for their service and sacrifice; and

(2)

calls on the Government to:

(a)

adopt the recommendations of the Review to award the medals for Korean Post-Armistice Service; and

(b)

give further consideration to Recommendations 8B and 8C of the Review, regarding improvements to the medal system.

At issue is whether ADF personnel will be given just recognition for their service and sacrifice during the post-armistice period in Korea, from July 1953 to April 1956. I welcome the presence of a number of Korean War veterans in the public gallery today. The government has insulted these veterans by not providing them with a sensitive and timely decision. It has discarded the outcomes of its own independent review, which conducted extensive hearings into the matter. This response has been nothing short of complete arrogance towards some very impressive Australians.

The Post-Armistice Korean Service Review was established to examine the level of recognition that post-armistice service has been given. On 20 December 2005, the highly competent panel, chaired by Rear Admiral Ian Crawford and Garry Nehl AM, delivered their findings to the previous Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, De-Anne Kelly, who is at the table today. Minister Kelly and her successor, Minister Billson, did not respond to the report and ignored veterans’ requests for a meeting until May 2006, some six months after it was handed down. At that time Minister Billson still provided no response to the review’s findings. While time appears immaterial to the government, the same cannot be said for the veterans, who continue to suffer distress while awaiting a fair outcome. Distressingly, a number have passed away since the review was instigated.

Minister Billson’s eventual decision was a bombshell. The committee’s very sensible recommendations for an Australian General Service Medal and a Returned from Active Service Badge for Korea veterans were flatly rejected. Also rejected were the calls for a much-needed improvement of the decision-making process. These measures would have afforded veterans the same recognition as their counterparts in the United States and ensured at least one award that explicitly recognised service in Korea in the post-armistice period.

The awards were refused because of a distinction between ‘warlike’ and ‘non-warlike’ service. The terms are distinguished by such factors as whether the application of force ‘was authorised to pursue specific military objectives’. The reality is that post-armistice service in Korea entailed patrolling with live ammunition, the maintenance of minefields and the manning of defensive positions. During this period enemy contact was not infrequent, and indeed 18 men died. Under the government’s criteria, however, this is considered ‘non-warlike’. The veterans have been given legal advice that they would have met the original criteria for the medals that were in place at the time of their service. That is a factor that we also call upon the government to consider.

The inconsistency in the government’s position leaves those who did post-armistice service in Korea with less recognition than personnel who served at Ubon RAAF base in Thailand during the Vietnam War. If the government is serious about taking care of our soldiers it has to put its money where its mouth is. It is time to demonstrate that Australia values the sacrifice of these Korean War veterans by giving all of them the recognition they deserve. The Labor opposition fully supports the veterans in their attempts to gain conferral of the awards. They are seeking it not simply for themselves but also for some fallen mates. Labor calls upon the government to urgently reconsider its position in this matter. It has justification for reviewing its decision: it has the sensible recommendations of the review. It is simply a matter of implementing those recommendations.

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