Ian James Stodart Kennison (19 December 1920 – May 2000) was an Australian intelligence officer, soldier and public servant, who was Director-General of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service from 1975 to 1981.

Early life and education

Kennison was the son of Mr. and Mrs. G. S. Kennison of Darlinghurst Road, Kings Cross. He was educated at

Melbourne Church of England Grammar School Melbourne Grammar School is an Australian private Anglican day and boarding school. It comprises a co-educational preparatory school from Prep to Year 6 and a middle school and senior school for boys from Years 7 to 12. The three campuses are ...

, matriculating in 1937 and enrolling at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

. While at Melbourne, he obtained a half-blue in rifle shooting, but did not complete his studies due to the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Military service

Kennison enlisted in the

Second Australian Imperial Force The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initial strength of one ...

(AIF) in 1939, and served as a gunner in Australia and the

South West Pacific Area South West Pacific Area (SWPA) was the name given to the Allied supreme military command in the South West Pacific Theatre of World War II. It was one of four major Allied commands in the Pacific War. SWPA included the Philippines, Borneo, the ...

. In 1943, then at the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

, Kennison was court-martialled over an incident where he was in charge of a country camp of draft recruits. On 19 November 1943, the recruits were moved from one camp to another to be X-rayed, and the prosecution alleged that Kennison has not ensured the supervision of the recruits by himself or other officers, resulting in rowdy behaviour and possible consumption of liquor. In December, the court-martial found Kennison not guilty of the charges of not keeping the camp in a proper state of cleanliness, and not maintaining discipline among the draft. After the end of the war and in his last year of service, Kennison was involved with organising the war crimes trials on Morotai and Ambon against more than 90 Japanese officers.

Post-military career

Kennison was discharged from the army on 5 April 1946. He returned to Melbourne, where he spent ten years working in the retail sector, eventually managing the drapery and department store Hicks, Atkinson & Sons on Collins Street. In 1956, Kennison was recruited to the

Australian Secret Intelligence Service The Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS ) is the foreign intelligence agency of the Commonwealth of Australia, responsible for gathering, processing, and analysing national security information from around the world, primarily throug ...

, having been offered the role in no small part due to his war record and investigative experience during the Morotai and Ambon trials. In 1976, after twenty years of service with ASIS, Kennison was appointed director-general of the service on the recommendation of Justice Robert Hope, who at the time was conducting a

Royal Commission A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equi ...

into Australia's intelligence services.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kennison, Ian 1920 births 2000 deaths Directors-general of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service Australian spies Australian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Australian Army officers Australian Army personnel of World War II University of Melbourne alumni People educated at Melbourne Grammar School Military personnel who were court-martialed