Chief of Defence Force 'appalled' after violent crime victims' names released, including 10-year-old boy

August 22, 2018

1 NEWS uncovered the names o fthe victims while trawling through a raft of documents.

The New Zealand Defence Force is "appalled" after the names of five victims of violent crime, including two women and a child, were released accidentally.

1 NEWS yesterday reported that extensive documents had been released by NZDF under the Official Information Act containing lists of military charges brought against NZDF members.

Almost 5000 charges have been laid in the military court against about 3750 NZDF personnel since the beginning of 2013 - almost 20 charges per week, on average.

Within the documents provided are the un-redacted names of five victims of violent crime at the hands of NZDF members.

Documents provided to 1 NEWS contained the names of five victims of violent crime at the hands of NZDF personnel.

One of the victims was a ten-year-old boy who was assaulted by a lance corporal last year and the two women and two men were also assault victims.

In each of the cases, the charges were transferred to the civil court and the servicemen convicted and sentenced, with some remaining in active NZDF service.

Chief of Defence Air Marshal Kevin Short apologised to the victims unreservedly.

"I think it's appalling," he said.

"I'm so surprised to hear that we actually did release some information under the Official Information Act a couple of months ago with names of victims ... that is not acceptable."

"We go to great lengths to make sure that doesn't happen - obviously there's something wrong with our process and we need to fix that.

"I don't think they know that their names have been put out yet, but I'm going to make sure that we actually contact each of the victims and give our sincere apologies for it.

"We never intend to release any names or put any victims into the spotlight, but in this case, I don't know how it happened - I'll have to do an investigation when I get home, but in no circumstances is that acceptable."

Defence Minister Ron Mark said he was aware of the breach and said it will be investigated.

"When the Defence Force releases large amounts of information ... they need to pay attention to the detail," Mr Mark said.

"The heart and centre of this is the victims, and victims' rights need to be protected.

"If we have erred in that space then I am very confident the new leadership team will tidy that up."

Privacy Commissioner John Edwards called the breach "unfortunate".

"While the objective of the Official Information Act is to promote openness in government, it does include provisions to protect the privacy of individuals and it is crucial that agencies use those provisions for that purpose," Mr Edwards said.

"I trust that the Defence Force has learnt from its mistake and will put procedures in place to make sure something like this does not happen again."

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