Military veterans have slammed defense chiefs after they were bizarrely stripped of medals due to a ‘technical issue’ just weeks before Anzac Day.
Some crew members of HMAS Manoora were awarded an Australian Active Service Medal (AASM) in 2014 for their work in providing humanitarian assistance and weapons transfers in East Timor during the year 2000.
Despite a decade of proudly wearing and displaying the AASM, the Defense Honors and Awards Appeals Tribunal suddenly stripped crew members of their awards.
The move came after four members of HMAS Manoora later applied for the same medal after being on the same missions but were rejected by the tribunal.
The decision has been branded ‘reprehensible’ by fellow veterans, who have called on Defense Secretary Richard Marles for an immediate response.
A group of defense personnel have been stripped of an Australian Active Service Medal (AASM) just weeks before Anzac Day due to a shocking ‘technicality’ (stock image)
The crew were stripped of their medals because they were technically “not forcibly assigned to the original task force or operation” because they had been brought in at “short notice,” 2GB reports.
A letter to crew members who had their AASMs stripped recommended that they ‘not wear the medal, associated ribbon and return from service badge’ until Mr Marles ruled on the matter.
The tribunal’s decisions to deny the remaining crew members were intended to ‘protect the integrity of the defense system for awards and decorations’.
It was recommended that the then Minister of Defence, Peter Dutton, should assess the ‘suitability of each member of the ship’s company of HMAS Manoora who had been awarded the AASM… for service between 17 and 18 April’.
‘If it is determined that such a person is ineligible to receive that award, he must take all reasonable steps to revoke that award and claim the return of the medal and/or bar in question.
“I have been told by one of the crew that there is no doubt that the ship was in the war zone for the prescribed period of time and was taking part in belligerent operations at the time,” Ben Fordham told listeners.
“This could be resolved retroactively by giving the remaining crew an AASM, but instead they want to take back the medals they already approved.”
A fourth-generation digger, whose family service dates back to the Gallipoli campaign in the First World War, said it was “hard to believe” he was being asked to hand in his medal.
‘How do I explain this to members of my RSL sub-branch if a medal suddenly disappears? Veterans are noticing these things,” he said.
‘How do I explain this to my children, who are also very proud of their military history?’
The diggers received the AASM after providing humanitarian aid and ammunition transport to East Timor in 2000 as crew members of HMAS Manoora (pictured)
Shadow Assistant Secretary of Defense and ex-serviceman who was injured in Afghanistan, Phillip Thompson, called the decision ‘disgraceful’.
“Veterans all over the world will be listening to this,” he told 2GB.
“This is a government that says, ‘Thank you for your service, now give us your medal back.’
After some of the crew were awarded the East Timor AASM (pictured), others were later turned away as the ship was not technically assigned to the operation as a short-term addition
“What the Honors and Awards should have done is given everyone on that ship the same award.”
Mr Thompson said the Defense Secretary has been “briefed” on the issue and “must act today” to limit anxiety among those affected.
“We are heading into Anzac Day and this is a very stressful and challenging time for many of our veterans, including myself,” he said.
“You think about your service, you think about the friends you’ve lost.
“And we’ll have veterans asking, ‘Should I wear this? Do I deserve the medals I worked for and earned?’.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Australian Defense Force and the Defense Honors and Awards Appeals Tribunal for comment.
The decision to strip the entire crew of HMAS Manoora of their medals in the weeks leading up to Anzac Day (pictured, 2021) was described as ‘reprehensible’ by fellow veterans.
The outrage comes as the family and friends of diggers who committed suicide tell their heartbreaking stories to a Royal Commission.
The Committee on Defense and Veteran Suicide has been holding comments and hearings on the case since July 8, 2021, and is expected to release their findings by September 9.
An interim report released in August last year found that initial investigations had uncovered a number of factors leading to suicidal deaths among defense personnel.
“The prevalence of suicide and suicidality among serving and ex-serving members of the Australian Defense Force is something that should concern us all,” the interim report reads.
“Every death by suicide, every life lost has profound consequences for family, friends, colleagues and the wider community.”
