Military reopening sexual assault cases
OTTAWA (CP) — Canada’s top soldier struck an optimistic note Friday about efforts to stamp out sexual misconduct in the ranks, even as the military promised to reopen dozens of sexual assault cases previously deemed “unfounded.”
Chief of defence staff Gen. Jonathan Vance expressed anger and frustration late last year that some military personnel were continuing to behave inappropriately, despite his clear order for them to stop.
In his latest update on what the military calls Operation Honour, Vance offered a more upbeat assessment, saying progress is being made on a number of fronts. Those include better training for all service members, improved services and support for victims and a tougher line on those who continue to act inappropriately.
“I am confident that we’ve been moving in the right direction on Operation Honour,” Vance told reporters at National Defence Headquarters.
The military said that since January, it has moved to kick out 77 members who have been found guilty of sexual misconduct.
Those cases are still being reviewed, and Vance said some may end up staying in the Forces, but the figure represents a dramatic increase from the 26 members who were released last year.
“At the end of last year, I ordered that every member of the Canadian Armed Forces who’s found guilty of sexual misconduct should receive a notice of intent to recommend their release,” Vance said.
“My orders and my expectations were clear, and the consequences are also clear.”
Vance also said military police are reopening 166 cases involving complaints of sexual assault reported between 2010 and 2016 but deemed “unfounded.”
During that period, nearly one in three cases was labelled as unfounded, a rate the military’s top police officer, Brig-Gen. Robert Delaney, confirmed was higher than that of most civilian police forces.
It’s also nearly double the number that military police labelled as unfounded last year, an improvement Delaney attributed to the fact all such cases are now handled by the military’s special investigative service.