Prime Minister Tony Abbott has announced this morning that Lieutenant General Angus Campbell will replace Lieutenant General David Morrison as Australia’s new Chief of Army.
Lt General Morrison announced early this year that he would resign from the post in May after serving four years as army chief. He was appointed in 2011 for a three-year term, but extended the term in 2014 at the request of the prime minister.
When he leaves the post, Morrison will have served 36 years in the Australian military. His military career skyrocketed to international fame in 2013 when he begun a dedicated campaign to rid the army of sexism and misogyny.
In a YouTube video that quickly went viral, the army chief famously said that sexism, gendered violence and misogyny had no place in the Australian military. If you don’t agree, he said to his soldiers, “get out”.
Morrison has remained committed to this message ever since, and his list of achievements is long. He has implemented a series of reforms of military operations to better protect female soldiers from abuse, harassment and violence. He has fired hundreds of soldiers and army staff for harassment and violence-related offences, demonstrating he is serious about ridding the army of this culture.
He has worked with female soldiers to better understand how and when violence and abuse occurs in the military, in order to better combat it. He has also worked in conjunction with the United Nations in an attempt to end rape in conflict.
He has dramatically increased the number of women in the armed forces by establishing targets and mechanisms by which to measure his progress. He has fallen slightly shy of his 2015 target for female participation in the military, but is determined that after his tenure the numbers will continue to increase.
Will his legacy of fighting institutionalised sexism survive beyond his resignation?
In a conversation with Anne Summers last month, Morrison assured the audience that it would.
He said the structures and policies he has put in place will ensure that the military continues its journey towards gender equality and ending gendered violence after he relinquishes his post. He also expressed confidence that his successor would be as committed to the project as he has been.
“There is no going back now,” he said when asked whether his legacy would continue.
“If people aren’t prepared to live by the code – then they can find somewhere else to work,” Morrison said.
Morrison’s successor, General Campbell, also has a decorated history with the armed services. He attracted controversy in 2014 surrounding his close work with then Immigration Minister Scott Morrison on military enforcement of Operation Sovereign Borders, the government’s tough asylum seeker policy.
Campbell has not yet commented on whether he will continue Morrison’s dedicated work towards ending sexism in the military, but we certainly hope he does.
Morrison has established a clear road map for a more equal future in the army, and hopefully Campbell will be committed to following it closely. He certainly has big shoes to fill, and we look forward to watching his progress.
Read about the woman who coaches Lt General David Morrison.