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Allegations
of Abuse in Institutions |
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Photo: Justice Morris Retired High Court
Judge David Morris has dismissed allegations there was a culture of violence
at the Waiouru cadet school despite the inquiry recording numerous instances
of alleged abuse. Justice Morris says
some of the 81 former cadets he interviewed told him of instances of physical
and sexual abuse including: nuggetting, spooning, barrelling, beatings and
kicking, verbal abuse, extortion, forced showering, cigarettes burns, and
beatings with brooms and rifles. The inquiry also
mentions the death of six cadets, including Grant Bain, and the alleged
sexual abuse of 19 cadets. But Justice Morris says
while there was "some" bullying there was no culture of violence.
He received 473 emails and letters from former cadets and people connected to
the school. Of these, 215 claimed to have seen or experienced bullying, while
151 said they did not. "I am satisfied,
consciously or unconsciously, some of the descriptions given to me have been
embroidered with the telling," Justice Morris said. He also said there was
little medical evidence to support the allegations. But there are chilling
recollections from former cadets. One told Mr Morris he
was sterile because of being "spooned". "My private parts
never developed because of what was - I was hit with a towel, rolled up
longways, soaking wet, felt as hard as anything ..." Another detailed a
cadet running through a "gauntlet" of 70 people, each of whom punched
or kicked him. Other cadets report
being burned with cigarettes, being beaten so hard they lost consciousness
and had blood in their urine. But Justice Morris says
in the report that bullying is a fact of life. "To suffer and
endure it is unfortunately the lot of some." He said that the cadets
who were bullied tended not to have met hygiene standards or had
"dragged the chain". "Those bullied
appear to have been generally those unable, because of size or make-up, to
adequately defend themselves. I suspect a number of these cadets should never
have been selected for the Army." Whistleblower Ian
Fraser, who raised the allegations of abuse at the school last year, said he
was happy with Justice Morris' inquiry. "You have to take
the emotion out of it and look at it in the cold hard light of day. "I was quite happy
with Justice Morris being appointed. I think he has done a great job, he has
put his own health on the line to get the job done." Justice Morris is no
stranger to controversy. In 1996 while summing up at a rape trial he said if
every man stopped the first time a woman said "No", the world would
be a much less exciting place.
·
Nuggetting: Covering a cadet's genitals with boot polish. ·
Spooning: Repeatedly hitting a cadet's genitals with a
spoon or towel. ·
Barrelling: Forcing a cadet to run the gauntlet of other
cadets, who punch and hit him. |
