Allegations
of Abuse in Institutions |
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Wellington: The results
of a long-delayed inquiry into allegations of abuse at the army’s former
cadet school at Waiouru have been referred to the Crown Law office for legal
advice. The inquiry, by former
High Court judge David Morris, began in November last year and was to have
been completed by the end of March. It was held up when Judge Morris suffered
a heart problem. A spokesman for Defence
Minister Phil Goff said the report had now been received and referred to
Crown Law. The inquiry was sparked
last October when former army sergeant Ian Fraser published an article
reporting widespread physical, psychological and sexual abuse of cadets as
young as 15 at the school in the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s. He claimed about a
third of all cadets suffered abuse at the school, and his aim was to gain
recognition and possible compensation for those suffering continuing problems
from their abuse. Mr Fraser said it had
long been recognised that soldiers could have problems as a result of
traumatic military experiences. However, it was more difficult for army
authorities to accept that trauma and other psychological damage could result
from the army’s own culture of violence. His story prompted
about 300 former cadets to report their experiences at Waiouru. |