Monday 7 July, 2025 – Australia:
Women Veterans Australia (WVA) stands in solidarity with the courageous women featured in Sunday’s 60 Minutes investigation, The Predators Within, who have come forward to speak publicly about their experiences of sexual assault within the Australian Defence Force (ADF).
Their bravery is a powerful reminder of the ongoing strength and resilience of survivors who continue to face institutional betrayal and failure in pursuit of justice.
WVA also acknowledges the incredible support being provided to victim survivors by the Athena Project.
The recent findings of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide have confirmed what many women veterans have long known: sexual violence within Defence is neither a historical problem nor one that has been adequately addressed.
Alarmingly, over one in three women currently serving have reported sexual assault or harassment.
Women who are involuntarily medically discharged from the ADF—often as a result of sexual trauma—are five times more likely to die by suicide than their civilian counterparts (Royal Commission, 2024).
Despite repeated reviews, including the Broderick Review (2011) and the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, Defence continues to rely on internal cultural reform strategies that have demonstrably failed to deliver accountability or change.
“We do not need another program or review. We need action,” said Llani Kennealy, Chair of Women Veterans Australia.
“It is not enough to reframe sexual violence as a ‘cultural issue.’ We must call it what it is: rape, assault, and abuse of power.
The continued failure to act not only destroys lives; it weakens capability in an already shrinking talent pool.
In a rapidly changing global security environment, the ADF must be proactive in creating a safe and permissive environment for all who have the courage to serve.”
WVA is calling on Defence leadership to demonstrate courage and integrity by:
- Acknowledging systemic failure
- Holding perpetrators and bystanders to account
- Centring survivor voices and experiences
- Taking transparent and immediate action
Each delayed or inadequate response leads to more harm, more careers lost, and more lives at risk. Without real accountability, Defence will continue to fail the people it needs most and undermine its own operational effectiveness.
Enough is enough. Survivors deserve justice—not another decade of delay.
Media Contact:
Women Veterans Australia
Email: ljkennealy@outlook.com
Phone: 049201670579
Website: www.womenveteransaustralia.com.au
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