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Allegations
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The Te Awamutu man
whose brother was killed at Waiouru's Regular Force Cadet School in 1981 says
the findings of an investigation into the death have vindicated his family's
battle for the truth. Grant Bain, 17, died in
1981 after being shot by fellow cadet Andrew Read in the cadet barracks. Murray Bain, himself a
former cadet and soldier, said the Bain family were initially told Grant had
died in hospital. "We then find we'd
been lied to; the army had been using pictures of my brother lying dead on
the barrack room floor for training. "Initially we were
told they weren't and we've been fighting for the truth ever since," he
said. Read was convicted of
careless use of a firearm causing death, sentenced to 200 hours' community
service and fined $200. Mr Bain said his
brother's killer should have faced manslaughter charges and retired High
Court Judge David Morris, who carried out the investigation, agreed. The report concluded both
the police and army had failed to treat the case in an adequate and
satisfactory way. "The judge's
decision has vindicated our struggle for the last three years to find out the
truth, we didn't get everything we wanted but it's the first step in closure
for us," said Mr Bain. Next week, members of
the Bain family will travel to Wellington to meet Defence Minister Phil Goff
to receive a formal apology. "But I'd also like
to hear from the chief of the army and the police and hear an apology from
them on how the whole affair was mismanaged," Mr Bain said. It was too early to
discuss whether the family would be seeking compensation. "All along our aim
was to get to the bottom of what happened. "This was never
about compensation. We've reserved the right to come back to that issue if
and when we decide it's appropriate," he said. The inquiry was
launched in October last year by then Defence Minister Mark Burton after
former cadet Ian Fraser published a report on the internet detailing
physical, psychological and sexual abuse at the school. Justice Morris found
though there were numerous cases of bullying and 19 cases of alleged sexual
abuse, there was no culture of violence at the school. The findings appeared
fair to former army recruiter Mike Subritzky, of Te Awamutu, who was involved
with recruiting three classes of cadets in the 1980s. "Abuse at the
school did not happen every year but depended solely upon the calibre, honour
and leadership of the senior cadets at the time," he said. "I have always
maintained what went on was the result of individuals, as opposed to an
established culture within the New Zealand Army, and the report's findings
bear this out." |
