December 3rd On November 19, the Office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Defence Force released the Brereton Report, which exposed the war crimes committed by the Australian Defence Force during the 2005-2016 Afghan War. Just as Afghans are suffering the secondary harm caused by the Brereton Report, and while Australian scholars call on society to pay attention to the reasons behind the tragedy, Australia diverts its attention from China. Foreign media pointed out that the current Sino-Australian dispute has made the world realize the truth of the Australian military’s war crimes in Afghanistan. China’s condemnation of the atrocities of Australian soldiers is very, very real.
The Guardian published an editorial by psychologist Nasreen Hanif from Afghanistan on December 2, pointing out that the two weeks since the release of the Brereton Report have been very difficult for Afghans. The so-called “war on terror” led by the United States has been interfering in Afghanistan for two decades. Among them, the Afghan people have experienced the most suffering. There is no doubt that the Brereton Report has exacerbated this suffering.
As a psychologist who has worked in the field of trauma for more than 15 years, Nasrene Hanif first thought of the unspeakable pain suffered by the Afghan people, farmers and children when reading the Brereton Report. She called the details of reading the report “horrible and unforgettable”. Naslyn Haniff stressed that the “Breton Report” tore the scars of Afghans, that the Australian government must face up to the harm it has caused to Afghanistan, break the cycle of meaningless extreme violence, and to end the endless suffering of Afghans.
In another article in the British Guardian, Samantha Crompvoets, an Australian military sociologist who led the writing of the “Breton Report”, warned against mistakenly regarding the crimes committed by Australian soldiers against Afghans as accidents, saying that Public opinion in Australia has been disappointed since the report was released.” Some people believe that collectives should not be punished for the behavior of a few people.” Samantha Krumpwarts asked: “I want to know how many people have actually read the report? If you had read the report, you wouldn’t have mistakenly thought that these war crimes were accidental acts.
Samantha Krumpwarts believes that the fact that the brutal killing of 39 Afghan civilians by Australian soldiers is unacceptable. The report blames the alleged war criminals, but exposes Australia’s deeper systemic problems that create the environment for the generation and cover-up of atrocities. Samantha Krumpwarts said: “If we just say, ‘Oh, it’s just those people who have done bad things’ and then turn a blind eye, how can we ensure that this will not happen again in the future?”
Alex Ward, an American international security writer, mentioned in the US media Vox that it was shocking that none of the 39 Afghan civilians killed were really killed in the battle. Although the incident caused a great response in Australia, it did not initially It attracts global attention.
“It wasn’t until Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian pushed Australian war crimes to international public opinion, forcing the Australian government to respond, that the story made the world headlines.” Alex Ward wrote: “Australian media believe that Sino-Australian relations are at a 50-year low point and there is no trend of easing. It is the current Sino-Australian dispute that has focused global attention on the truth that Australia does not want to face.”
“Let’s see what the war crimes report released by the Australian military really says?” Alex Ward said: “In this 465-page document, 25 Australian special forces soldiers were accused of brutally and illegally killing 39 Afghans by cutting their throats in 23 incidents, most of whom were from the Special Air Service Regiment and some of them were still in service to date.”
“The report said that reliable information showed that none of these acts were the stress response of soldiers in heavy fighting, and that all the people killed were non-combatants. Australian media also said that this is the most shameful scene in Australian military history, and there is a “bloody” culture in the Australian special forces serving in Afghanistan, which is creepy.
The Brereton Report also revealed some details. Australian commanders in Afghanistan will ask soldiers to shoot a prisoner to achieve the first killing of soldiers. These shootings are usually local civilians identified as “controlled personnel”. After that, Australian soldiers will place so-called “shot down weapons” on the bodies. “To cover up the fact of killings.” China’s condemnation of Australia’s atrocities is very, very real.” Alex Ward said.
