Defence 'in dark ages' over scandals

Adair Donaldson said his work with the ADF and National Rugby League convinced him the ADF was in "dark ages" when compared with the NRL.

"What amazes me is despite the fact that there will be regular incidents that occur in relation to sexual assaults, the irresponsible use of technology, fights, drink-driving and drugs, the ADF continues to provide lip service," Mr Donaldson told The Age.

"Quite frankly the time for reports and inquiries is over. The mandatory training that each soldier is required to undergo in relation to sexual assaults, alcohol, etc is a joke. ADF members are forced to do this training. They are not doing it to understand the issues or to bring about a cultural change."

Mr Donaldson, an army reservist for 25 years, has educated soldiers in a bid to tackle cultural issues in Defence. He has run seminars with school and university students and NRL players.

The Age has seen several emails from mid-level Defence personnel strongly praising his work, and advising that it should be taken up throughout the ADF.

"It represents a prevailing and growing youth behaviour trend that has the potential to degrade society more and more if not checked and adjusted," one email from a captain to superior officers said.

"It is potentially attitude-changing on a significant scale towards improved social behaviour among the risk-taking, habit-forming age group of 15-30. It has big potential for pay off over time."

Other emails show that several attempts to convince high-ranking Defence officials to adopt the program have been ignored.

Mr Donaldson acknowledged that counselling was a business, but said he had previously done a significant amount of work for Defence without charge, and that the cost was comparatively low. Independent experts have vouched for Mr Donaldson's integrity and the quality of his courses.

Mr Donaldson said he had the utmost respect for Australian soldiers, sailors and airmen, but the ethos of mateship and solidarity had potentially sinister side effects.

"Their training is all about that they stick up for their mates It is a close relationship. Such a close relationship is extremely important in a combat environment where trust is so important, but it can lead to significant cultural issues," he said.

"The attitudes they've got are not unique to them, but they're more pronounced, given their occupation."

The Age has seen comments submitted by army personnel in response to Mr Donaldson. While the vast majority showed a healthy attitude towards issues of sexual assault and other anti-social behaviour, some did not.

One officer said he believed it was hypocritical for women to be able to say they did not consent to sex if they were drunk, while men would not be believed if they said the same thing. Another claimed officers were filming themselves having sex in order to protect themselves against allegations of rape.

"What statistics will not include are incidents that occur on base which are dealt with by the military police through the Defence Force Discipline Act," he said. "That is, many of the issues are dealt with internally and it is only the matters that come before the civil courts which will attract your attention."

The Defence Force has been reeling from scandals and unsavoury incidents lately.

A recent commission of inquiry found that a "tribal" group of senior sailors on HMAS Success engaged in predatory sexual and drunken misconduct on deployment to Asia in 2009, covering themselves through a culture of "silence and mutual protection".

As a result of the Success inquiry, Vice-Admiral Russ Crane ordered all navy personnel to watch a video message in which he lambasted a culture of drinking and warned of measures to combat it.

Days later, two sailors were killed and three others seriously injured in a car crash near the HMAS Cerberus naval base on the Mornington Peninsula. Senior police said alcohol might have been involved. Two weeks ago another investigation was launched after Australian soldiers in Afghanistan posted racist and insulting messages about Afghans on Facebook.