The Australian army on Thursday banned the use of ‘death’ symbols such as the Pirate Skull and Crossbones.
Local media noted that Gen. Angus Campbell, who is to take over as the country’s next chief of defence in July, issued the order.
Campbell said emblems such as the Grim Reaper, Spartans, Skull and Crossbones and comic book vigilante characters Phantom and Punisher encouraged a “general disregard for the most serious responsibility of our profession: the legitimate and discriminate taking of life.”
“As soldiers our purpose is to serve the state, employing violence with humility always and compassion wherever possible.
“This symbology to which I refer erodes this ethos of service,’’ Campbell stressed.
He, however, led the government’s controversial campaign Operation Sovereign Borders to intercept refugee boats before they reached Australian soil and take the asylum seekers to Nauru and Manus Island. (dpa/NAN)
