Sex scandal prompts Australia military probe
The head of Australia's elite military academy has been stood aside and a review of the treatment of women at the college ordered on Monday, after a sex scandal involving a young female cadet.
Defence Minister Stephen Smith announced a series of inquiries after a male student filmed himself having sex with a female colleague at the Australian Defence Force Academy and allegedly secretly broadcast it to his friends.
The minister said the head of the college, Bruce Kafer, whom he had previously criticised for his handling of the woman's complaint, had been asked to take indefinite leave while the inquiries were underway.
Smith also ordered the national human rights agency's sex discrimination commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick, to review the treatment of women at the Canberra college.
"This will be an important step in commencing a far-reaching cultural appraisal and ongoing change programme for Defence," he said.
The review follows revelations that video of an 18-year-old female cadet having consensual sex with a male student at the academy was broadcast via Skype to six fellow students without her knowledge.
Taking her story to the media, the woman said she was physically sick after learning she had been watched by others.
Her action triggered a series of fresh complaints about sexual misconduct within the military stretching back decades.
Smith said all the allegations aired in the media in the past week would be dealt with "carefully, exhaustively and methodically".
The defence force would also look at the range of options women have within the Australian military, he added.
At present, 93 percent of roles are open to women, but they are prohibited from the remaining mostly combat roles.
"When it comes to women in the ADF, including in combat roles, an opportunity for women should be determined on the basis of physical and intellectual capacity, not on gender," Smith said.
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