Army sorry over the cover-up of a hit-and-run in which the victim was 'only an Arab'

MORE than 18 years after he reported a senior soldier for a hit-and-run car accident in the Middle East, David Hartshorn has finally received an apology after an Army cover-up of the crime.

The former sergeant was fobbed off by everyone from then Defence Personnel Minister Bronwyn Bishop down, after he ignored orders to keep the crime secret because the woman struck by an Australian 4WD vehicle in Egypt in August 1994 was ''only an Arab''.
His final quest for justice was to report it to the DLA Piper Review of abuse in Defence and he believes the apology he has received from Army Chief Lieutenant General David Morrison and the Inspector General of Defence Geoff Earley came directly as a result of the ADFA Skype-sex inquiry.
The government will soon respond to the Piper review, which recommended action on 775 credible claims of abuse in the military.
It is understood that it favours an amnesty deal and a Royal Commission into the claims, but it is complicated by the inclusion of several very prominent names in the ''accused'' columns of the classified report.

According to sources the names include two former Defence chiefs, at least one ex-service chief and numerous serving senior officers.
Lieutenant General Morrison did what his five predecessors, Generals John Sanderson, Frank Hickling, Peter Cosgrove, Peter Leahy and Ken Gillespie, all chose not to do and has apologised to the Toowoomba-based former sergeant.
Mr Hartshorn was in the front passenger seat of a van driven by his Regimental Sergeant Major which hit the woman in central Cairo at a speed of about 40 km/h.
Because the vehicle never stopped at the time and no one found out later, it is not known what happened to her.
''I am sorry that your treatment by Army was so poor that you felt forced to discharge from Army in 1998 and I regret this set of circumstances. Thank you for your good soldiering and for upholding Army's values,'' he wrote .
In a letter dated March 1998 an adviser to then Defence Personnel Minister Bronwyn Bishop wrote to him, ''With regard to your request for an apology from the Chief of Army, this has been given careful consideration and it has been decided to refuse your request.''
The current Inspector General of Defence Geoff Earley declined to further investigate Mr Hartshorn's claims, but praised his actions.
''I accept that you saw it your duty to bring the traffic accident in Egypt to the attention of your chain of command and that this action was consistent with the culture of reporting issues/incidents that the ADF wishes to encourage,'' Mr Earley wrote.
Mr Hartshorn said it was incredible that it had taken 18 years and half a dozen inquiries, including the DLA Piper Review, for authorities to admit that his actions were proper.
''I hope and pray that the hundreds of other complainants, subjected to much worse abuse than I was, may soon find closure for their own cases,'' he said.

news.com.au 30 Aug 2012

The government is only sorry that the cover-up got exposed, rather than from the actual content of the crime.

There is no remorse over the crime committed, as this is the attitude or mentality of the people in charge.

18 years of government crime cover-ups in this arena is a short time.

There is far more crime committed than the media is allowed to report.

Governments and the people they support are above the law when it comes to the criminal 'justice' system.

Another legacy of corrupt governance.