Independent inquiry the only option
After a week of claims and counterclaims over an SAS raid some say has eroded public trust in New Zealand’s armed forces, the waters are now so muddied an independent inquiry is the only way to determine the truth.
It has been seven days since the explosive, contested claims from authors Nicky Hager and Jon Stephenson that six civilians were killed during a botched SAS-led raid on two Afghani villages; seven days of scrambling from the Defence Force, back and forth accusations of inaccuracies and war crimes, and little reassurance from the Government.
The conflicting accounts from those supposedly in the know, from SAS members to thenDefence Minister Wayne Mapp, mean an independent inquiry is the only way to definitively prove what happened.
During an extraordinary press conference on Monday, Defence Force chief Lieutenant-General Tim Keating attempted to dispel the claims. Instead, his acknowledgement that civilians may in fact have been killed, after years of denials, only added to the appearance of what those who have a firm and positive position on the book’s claims would call a cover-up.
The fact those civilians may have been hit by fire from a US Apache helicopter which accidentally hit a building due to an equipment malfunction is an important distinction.
Keating’s claim that Kiwi soldiers had never operated in the villages named in the book is concerning, and needs to be addressed.
‘‘The clear contrast to me between the book and what actually happened during Operation Burnham was in all respects the conduct of the New Zealand ground forces was exemplary,’’ Keating said. That may be true.
The authors had a duty of care to ensure that, given the explosive nature of their allegations and their potential flow-on effect, their research and findings were ironclad.
Their claims, just like the counter-claims of the Defence Force, need to be scrutinised to determine their accuracy. Seven days of confusion shows we are beyond the point of taking on good faith what we are told by those involved. The claims of both sides need to be independently tested.
Pressure is mounting on the Government to approve an inquiry into the raid. Labour leader Andrew Little continued to back one on Tuesday, saying it was necessary ‘‘for the sake of their reputation and New Zealand’s reputation’’.
He’s right. Critics will say an inquiry is a waste of money, war is ugly, civilian casualties are an unfortunate reality of conflict. But anything other than a fully independent investigation will only reinforce the impression the public has been misled. In a nation that values the integrity of its armed forces, the impact of that cannot be dismissed.