Australian soldiers were given a a two-hour break from other duties yesterday to watch a video aimed at eradicating bullying in the armed forces.
The unprecedented stand-down by 50,000 members of the Australian defence force followed an investigation into acts of brutality in the third battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment, part of the vanguard of peacekeeping troops sent to East Timor in 1999.
The elite parachute unit was criticised by the defence minister, John Moore, in November for taking 10 days to remove death threats against Corporal Craig Smith daubed on a barracks' wall. Cpl Smith had told a parliamentary inquiry that two soldiers needed hospital treatment after punishment beatings in the battalion.
At least 30 former members told the inquiry that they had been on the receiving end of "rough justice" and "bastardisation" in 1997 and 1998.
It was also alleged that three members of the battalion played in a neo-Nazi rock group called Blood Oath.
"The seriousness of the situation is very evident in the video that we put out," the chief of the defence force, Admiral Chris Barrie, said.
"We wanted to leave no stone unturned to make sure that we were getting to the bottom of the issue."
He ordered an audit of the military justice system last year. Yesterday commanding officers urged their troops to report incidences of abuse to the audit team, chaired by a former federal court judge, which is due to publish its inquiry in April.
A telephone hotline opened on January 8 has received 125 calls, 24 after the video show. Privately, however, soldiers said the film would make little difference.
Australian soldiers have been praised for their bravery in the East Timor mission, but have also attracted controversy.
The Australian SAS was investigated for allegedly torturing Indonesian militiamen and posing for snapshots beside dead enemies. A year ago the army apologised to a number of East Timorese women who were sexually harassed by soldiers.