Family of Stuart Kelly, who took his own life after attending college, say a coronial inquest is needed into hazing culture

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The family of Stuart Kelly are demanding a coronial inquiry into the role they allege severe hazing may have played in his death, as a comprehensive report into sexual assault, harassment and hazing culture at university colleges is released.

The Red Zone, a 200-page report released on Monday and produced by the action group End Rape on Campus, details decades of institutionalised hazing and misogyny in residential colleges, especially those at the University of Sydney.

Kelly took his own life in July 2016. He was the younger brother of Thomas Kelly, who was killed in a one-punch attack in Sydney’s Kings Cross in 2012.

One in four women at University of Sydney colleges is sexually harassed, study finds Read more

At the beginning of the year, Stuart had attended the prestigious, all-male St Paul’s college at the University of Sydney, but left after one night.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Ralph and Kathy Kelly believe severe hazing and bullying might have played a part in the death of their son, Stuart, in 2016. Photograph: Dean Lewins/AAP

The Kelly family told 60 Minutes in July they suspected their son had been targeted by severe hazing and bullying. His mother Kathy said: “He went off to university at Sydney, for one night at a college, and he came home a different person the following day.”

The Red Zone report calls for an independent federal taskforce to investigate hazing and sexual assault in residential colleges.

It reveals a previously unreported practice at St Andrew’s College where male students masturbated into the shampoo of female residents.

It also said that in 2017, an initiation ritual at St John’s College, called “Green Goblin”, involved male residents breaking down the doors of women’s bedrooms, resulting in one student being taken to hospital.

At the same college, residents also had a tradition known as “No Jets Friday”, where male residents were told to treat female residents as if they did not exist, and were not allowed to make eye contact or speak to them. “Jets” is an acronym for “Just excuse the slag”, the report says.

The rector of St John’s college, Adrian Diethelm, said the college would investigate these practices “as swiftly as possible”.

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At the University of Sydney, residential colleges are founded by their own independent acts of parliament, the earliest dating back to 1856. This means the university has very limited power and oversight over the colleges.



The report recommends that the state government review these founding acts, and asks that Sydney high schools stop promoting colleges to their students if they have high rates of sexual assault.

Past hazing rituals within the colleges have been well documented, and form the bulk of the report. In March 2012, an 18-year old girl at St John’s was hospitalised after being forced to drink a mixture of shampoo, dog food and alcohol. In 2009, students at St Paul’s set up an “anti-consent”, pro-rape Facebook page.

In August, the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) conducted a sexual assault survey of 31,000 students across all 39 public universities. It also recommended an independent taskforce be set up to investigate residential colleges.



In November, the University of Sydney released its own review into its colleges, led by the former sex discrimination commissioner Elizabeth Broderick. It found that one in four women experienced sexual harassment and one in 12 college students had witnessed an actual or attempted sexual assault. It also found that 8% of female college residents and 2% of the males said they had experienced a sexual assault – in line with the AHRC’s national findings.

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But the Red Zone report has criticised the Broderick review for failures in methodology, leaving it “sanitised” and “tokenistic”.



It says too many student interviews were conducted in group settings rather than individually. One student told the authors: “There was a lot of pressure from senior students not to talk. You couldn’t say anything because people who support the college would destroy you.”



St Paul’s College, where Kelly stayed, was not included in the report as it had previously boycotted the review. The college’s report will be released in June.



The Red Zone report also criticises both previous reviews for not including behaviour-based questions. It says they asked general questions such as “have you been sexually assaulted”, rather than questions about specific behaviours.



Nina Funnell, an investigative journalist who was the lead author on the report, says behaviour-based questions have been shown to provide more accurate figures, usually doubling the rate of reporting.

“There is an existing standard out there that we should be modelling our research on. It is mind-boggling that neither survey conformed to that. It’s been established for over a decade that you don’t do surveys the way the Broderick review and the AHRC do.”

She says further reviews should focus on one-on-one interviews and speak to recent alumni, the parents of students and the staff.



“We always talk about this as an education issue, but colleges aren’t actually educational facilities, they are housing facilities. What’s happening in the colleges is a matter for the health minister and housing.”

Funnell says colleges have an institutional “siege mentality” when reports such as these come to light.

“Rather than reflecting maturely on perhaps the toxic elements of their culture that perhaps need to change, they will do the opposite, rail against those who have exposed them. That kind of defensiveness is instinctive. It’s not restricted to college students.”

The deputy head of St Paul’s, Geoff Lovell, told Guardian Australia the college had previously conducted “serious and comprehensive” investigations into Kelly’s time at St Paul’s which found the allegations unsubstantiated.

He said the college would cooperate fully with any coronial investigation.

“The college reaffirms its commitment to the values of respect and dignity, including equality of respect for women and men,” he said. “[We] reiterate our deepest sympathy to the Kelly family and support their desire to understand the causes of Stuart’s death.”



The University of Sydney declined to comment on the report before it was published.

• Crisis support services can be reached 24 hours a day: Lifeline 13 11 14; Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467; Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800; MensLine Australia 1300 78 99 78; Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636

