Supporters of Ben Roberts-Smith are turning a Brisbane park barbecue into a symbolic battleground over how Australia treats its most decorated soldiers, even as the Victoria Cross recipient faces grave war crimes charges he firmly denies.

Hero under fire vs. justice under scrutiny

From the conservative flank, the framing is clear: Roberts-Smith is a wronged war hero, not a suspected criminal. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson told attendees that “to me, Ben is a war hero,” casting the Afghanistan veteran as a symbol of sacrifice rather than alleged atrocity.¹ Her presence at the event underscores a narrative that the prosecution reflects a broader cultural turn against the military.

That sentiment is amplified by grassroots supporters such as Tammy Hickey, who travelled more than 12 hours to the Brisbane gathering. Her family’s multigenerational service — from her World War II–veteran father to relatives currently in uniform — is presented as moral authority for her view that Roberts-Smith is being treated disgracefully.²

In this account, the charges of war crime murder over the deaths of five Afghan nationals between 2006 and 2012 are treated as an affront to both the soldier and the institution he represents, with little attention paid to victims or the evidentiary basis of the case.¹

What’s missing from the rally narrative

Yet this hero-centric framing stands in tension with the gravity of the allegations. International humanitarian law demands rigorous accountability when civilians or detainees are killed in conflict, regardless of a soldier’s decorations. The conservative coverage dwells on emotional loyalty, but does not engage with the legal process, the Afghan dead, or the broader implications for Australia’s reputation.

By juxtaposing patriotic symbolism with silence on the substance of the charges, Roberts-Smith’s supporters risk turning a complex legal and ethical reckoning into a culture-war referendum on whether Australians are “allowed” to question their war heroes.

1. “‘To Me, Ben Is a War Hero’: One Nation Leader Speaks at Event Supporting Roberts-Smith” The Epoch Times

2. “Her Father Fought in World War II, She Travelled 12 Hours for Roberts-Smith” The Epoch Times