PM says ‘certainly wasn’t a government decision’ to award Ben Roberts-Smith
9news
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has expressed disappointment over the recent decision to honour war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith, highlighting a significant failure to recognize the complexities surrounding the case. Albanese notably refrained from offering congratulations to Roberts-Smith, underscoring his distance from King Charles’ decision.
Roberts-Smith, Australia’s most decorated soldier, appeared at Western Australia’s Government House this week to receive a coronation medal from King Charles III. This special honour, bestowed on all Victoria Cross recipients, was awarded despite the contentious circumstances surrounding Roberts-Smith. Although he retains his Victoria Cross due to the absence of criminal charges, a defamation trial concluded he had committed war crimes in Afghanistan. This verdict, however, is currently being appealed by Roberts-Smith’s lawyers.
In a statement today, Albanese made it unequivocally clear that the decision to recognize Roberts-Smith was entirely the prerogative of the King and not influenced by the Australian government. “This was the decision of the Palace to give all Victoria Cross recipients a further award,” he stated in an interview. Albanese continued, “It certainly wasn’t a government decision.”
In recent years, many media articles have declared that Ben Roberts-Smith is “Australia’s most decorated soldier”. While he may be the most decorated living Australian soldier, Australia’s most decorated soldier was apparently Lieutenant Colonel Henry William (Harry) Murray (1 December 1880 – 7 January 1966) who was awarded the VC, CMG, DSO and Bar, DCM, C roix de Guerre – and who served in World War I (Gallipoli), and later in the Second World War as a battalion commander (b. Launceston, Tasmania – 1 December 1880).
I am a bit gobsmacked at the different reactions of our PM to two Australians – Ben Roberts-Smith and Julian Assange. You know what I mean!
SO ARE WE. BEN HAS A VICTORIA CROSS, what has Juian have to get government special attention???
Absolutely agree Richard. Total hypocrisy from a PM, the guy you refer to is a convicted spy no less!
Totally agree.
Prior to our move away from the Imperial Honours List, every serving member of the ADF would have received this Award. In my view they should still do so but our tight fisted Governments won’t have a bar of it. The politicians seem to forget every ‘Digger’ swears allegiance to the Sovereign. The honours list may have changed, allegiance has not.
Well done BRS for accepting your Award publicly. As yet yiu have not been convicted of any crime.
The VC, MC and Bar, and DCM awarded to Lieutenant Joseph Maxwell (1896 – 1967) must come close to making him Australia’s second most decorated soldier.
What would Albo know about being in action during a wartime situation. Besides a king outranks a lowly PM any day of the week.
It’s time for Albanese and his radical left wing masters (particularly The Chief of Army and The Minister for Defence) to get off their slack arsed high horses, back off and accept that in every war, shit happens. They sent this Soldier to do a dirty job, (i.e. to kill the enemy) time and time again, which is of course going to change his mindset. I’ll bet that not a single one of these “armchair generals” who’s inaptitude was the cause of hundreds of thousands of dead Allied soldiers (and civilians) in WW1, WW2, Korea, Vietnam and of course the Middle East has ever seen the enemy through the rear sights of a rifle. Not a single one of these idiot politicians (and their far too many unqualified, uneducated backroom “yes men and women” lackeys) who so willingly train our Military to kill, then send the very best to do what they are trained to do are in any position to condemn a very brave soldier, who was doing what he was trained to do!. Who will they prosecute for the millions of dead civilians resulting from the actions of “the good guys” in Vietnam??.
The fact that Albanese has stated that it wasn’t a move by his Government to award another medal to Ben Robert-Smith is a good thing. I wonder if Ben or anyone else would lower themselves to Albo’s level to receive a medal from him or his cronies. One could be beyond any doubt that the Ribbon on any Medal that Albo presented would have threads stuck to it if not strings.
Ben Roberts-Smith deserves his awards. No politician would ever volunteer to serve as he did – for Australia
Regardless, of any offence he may have committed in a war zone, Ben saved the lives of his men by a selfless act of courage, and therefore should retain his well-earned VCs, I truly honor this man and congratulate him on receiving the Medal.
So, a prime minister can call and welcome a convicted felon back into Australia. But, he cannot, regardless of his thoughts, congratulate a VC winner of an award given by the King.
As many of us who have experienced serving in the ADF and especially in a War Zone will sympathize with Ben Roberts-Smith. Our Prime Minister, on the other hand, has not represented our Nation in the ADF or fought in a War Zone so would fail to understand the situations of war and it’s implications.
He could have, however, joined with those who are sympathetic to Ben and offered his and our Nation’s congratulations bestowed upon our recipient.
I would certainly like to leave a very brief comment. Whilst the PM has distanced himself from congratulating Ben on his award he couldn’t stop congratulating Dictator Dan on his King’s Honours for absolutely screwing the state of Victoria for hundreds of billions??
Well said, Sir!
As you realise, the honour handed to Premier Andrews was almost assuredly at the behest of the Federal Government as it pondered who of its cronies should be nominated. HM the King, of course, does not second-guess his Commonwelath Prime Ministers by long established convention, so there are always some duds who get the gongs.
No wonder I will not vote for this Leftist Labour MOB. I served two years of National Service from 1969 to ’71.
All through my working life I, as a “working man”, voted for a Labour Candidate. That was until this absolute clown took over.
Ben Roberts-Smith did what he was trained to do! and a whole lot more. He courageously saved his mates without any thought of his own safety. For his gallantry, he was awarded the highest military honour of The Victoria Cross. Just think about this, When a bomb is dropped, or a missile fired, or drone released, does the pilot, or indeed any of the crew know whom may be killed by this action? Albo! you should be congratulating this man for his deeds, and just for a brief moment in time, forget what you read by journalist’s who have never been in the thick of battle or even been in a country whilst a conflict is happening. I say good on you Ben, you are still a hero to not only me, but I wager a vast majority of Aussies. I also would join with other’s who posted here that Ben Roberts-Smith deserves much more from Albo. than a convicted criminal just recently arrived back in Australia.