AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE,
SYDNEY: Australia's military faced calls on Tuesday for an urgent inquiry after one of the navy's most senior female officers revealed she suffered years of physical and mental abuse in the service.
Former Lieutenant-Commander Robyn Fahy said late Monday that she endured daily abuse from joining the navy in 1986 until her dismissal in 2000 after being incorrectly diagnosed with a serious mental illness.
“On a daily basis I was beaten up… I can't remember a day where I wasn't punched or kicked or spat on,” she said of her time at the Australian Defence Force in Canberra.
“At the graduation parade I got punched, and in fact when I walked toward the governor-general to receive my award I got spat on,” she told national broadcaster ABC.
She said she had also been threatened by her commanding officer after she backed up a harassment claim made by another officer.
The Australian Defence Force, which is struggling to retain and recruit personnel, does not accept all of Fahy's claims but has attempted to find her another posting after her medical diagnosis was overturned.
“Defence has been working very hard to resolve what is a medical termination issue,” spokesman Colonel Andrew Nikolic told ABC radio.
Three months after backing up the harassment claim, Fahy visited a base doctor for a severe headache.
The medic referred her to a consulting psychiatrist and allegedly implied she had attempted suicide, was borderline depressed and had a personality disorder.
The psychiatrist diagnosed her with bipolar disorder and recommended she be hospitalised and sedated.
“They intended to have me committed to a psychiatric facility against my will,” Fahy said.
Two independent doctors later examined Fahy and found there to be nothing wrong. A government inquiry found the doctor guilty of medical misbehaviour on 22 counts.
Opposition Labor Party defence spokesman Mark Bishop called for an inquiry into Fahy's case, saying the government had failed to address serious abuse in the military.
He said Fahy would be foolish to return to the military until such problems were addressed.
Women make up about 13 percent of the Australian Defence Force, and have had roles in the military here since the late 19th century.
