And now, from another part of the media herd, this time with a bit of context
shared in accordance with the "fair dealing" provisions, Section 29, of the Copyright Act - http://www.cb-cda.gc.ca/info/act-e.html#rid-3340
Diggers go AWOL 2500 times
Michael McKinnon, FOI editor, The Australian, 22 Jul 06
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,19870406-31477,00.html
DEFENCE personnel have gone AWOL more than 2500 times in the past three years, with some soldiers failing to turn up for flights to East Timor and sailors missing as warships prepare to leave port.
Australian Defence Force documents reveal thousands of disciplinary breaches across the services. At least three personnel were jailed for being absent without leave and some disappeared for days at a time while on overseas deployment.
One soldier from Brisbane's Enoggera Barracks went missing for 67 days in late 2003,
while a sailor late to his ship in Sydney was still found AWOL even though he was only two minutes late in boarding.
Among the worst cases, a Sydney-based ADF member who went missing for 13 days in February last year was eventually arrested by MPs and NSW police and held in custody as a flight risk because he was absent when already confined to base. A Canberra-based sailor went AWOL from his ship for 42 days over the 2004 Christmas-New Year period, while
a sailor from Western Australia went AWOL for 32 days and 40 minutes.
The documents, obtained by The Weekend Australian under Freedom of Information laws, also reveal ADF personnel have failed to turn up for guard duty or attend training courses, with
personnel as high as the rank of captain being charged with AWOL offences.
The documents show that while the vast majority of offences were committed by privates and seamen (1328), there were about 80 offences during the period by junior officers such as lieutenants and captains. Punishments for AWOL offences include severe reprimands, detention, extra duties, restriction of privileges or leave and fines.
Under the Defence Force Discipline Act, any ADF member absent without leave is guilty of an offence with a maximum punishment of 12 months' prison.
However,
innocence can be established if an individual can prove it was due to circumstances beyond their control.
The documents also reveal numerous reports where alcohol consumption was cited as a factor behind the tardiness. There were also three cases of soldiers missing flights for return to service in East Timor.
The ADF documents reveal that from January 2003 to May this year there were a total of 2516 AWOL convictions for offenders among the 51,813 serving personnel in the army, navy and air force. The vast majority of AWOLs occurred on Australian soil, with 140 overseas offences compared with 2222 in Australia during the same period.
The ADF documents show that
of the 2362 proven offences, 840 involved personnel late by minutes, 1283 personnel late by hours and 298 offences where personnel were missing for days. The documents also reveal that 60 of the overseas offences involved personnel late by minutes, 77 offences involved personnel late by hours and two cases in which ADF members were absent without leave for days when working overseas.
ADF spokesman Brigadier Gus Gilmore said yesterday that the AWOL levels were "clearly a cause for concern".
"Any level of AWOLs would have a negative impact on efficiency," he said. "For that reason, even relatively small periods of absence can lead to disciplinary action."
