DAME KELLY URGES GAY FORCES
EX-RAF officer Steve Purves still has a criminal record after he was court-martialled and jailed for six months over his relationship with a male colleague.
He says a full apology and wiping the record is the least the Government should do after he was deprived of his military pension after 12 years of service.
Steve was tailed by the
Special Investigation Branch as he met his partner in Brize Norton, Oxon, in 1985. He recalls being interrogated and pressured to “confess” – then convicted of 17 counts of
They put me in prison – I was furious
gross indecency at a military court. Now 66, he says: “They tainted me, then put me in prison with people involved in actual criminality. I was furious.”
When he was released, Steve and his partner were
unwelcome at his family home and their romance broke down. He struggled to
get work due to his criminal record, so he started hiding it. Steve, who became a double-glazing salesman, said: “For years I had the secret of being same-sex attracted and then I had the secret of a criminal record.”
He held on to his anger until he met fellow victims through Fighting With Pride last year.
Steve, of Haywards Heath, West Sussex, added: “I live in a rented place, I went bankrupt 10 years ago.
“I should have received my RAF pension from the age of 38. Perhaps that’s something the inquiry can look at – ways to make the lives of affected people easier.”
EXCLUSIVE
BY AMY SHARPE
KELLY Holmes today issues a battle cry to all LGBT military veterans whose lives were ruined under the Forces ban on homosexuality.
The Olympic legend and former soldier – who came out as gay in the Sunday Mirror in June – wants persecuted troops to rise up and answer her “call to action”.
She needs them to give evidence to a landmark independent probe into the impact of a scandal that left thousands humiliated, stripped of honours, discharged or jailed under an archaic law which was only scrapped in 2000.
Many LGBT personnel lost their military pensions, were forced to come out to their families, and battled homelessness, unemployment and mental health issues.
Dame Kelly, 52, now an Honorary Colonel with the Royal Armoured Corps Training Regiment, was one of an army of Forces gays who hid their sexuality for decades over fear of prosecution.
Now she needs them to step forward for a march to justice.
Around 500 have so far submitted testimonials to the key independent review, agreed cross-party in the 2021 Armed Forces Bill, and chaired by Lord Etherton, ahead of its closing date of November 15.
Kelly said: “It’s not enough – we know thousands were affected. This is my call to action – I’ll put my neck out there.
“We need to make it known that people who have served their country were treated in that way and are still living today, suffering. There are those who were kicked out of the Army and completely disowned by their families – they’ve had to build a life with no support.
“Some became homeless as they lost everything – income, pensions and families – others took their lives.
“Many felt the fear like I did – those who were humiliated, who got raided, having all their property trashed, their whole life interrogated.
“This review needs to be as strong as possible so it can force the Government to do something. For some people, just acknowledgment that they have been impacted could be enough. But others will need support.”
In her campaign – in league with charity Fighting With Pride – she also calls for LGBT veterans stripped of medals to have them returned, and wants a formal compensation scheme set up.
And she wants a public apology delivered by a notable national figure, arguing that the Ministry of Defence’s apology for the “unacceptable” policy in 2020 was not significant enough.
Kelly said: “It has to be somebody high up who recognises the effects it’s had – somebody like the Prince of Wales who has empathy and connection with the military, to recognise that it’s wrong – or even the King. It would be good for whoever is
Prime Minister to make
We know there were thousands affected. This is my call to action DAME KELLY ON GETTING MORE TO COME FORWARD
an apology on behalf of the State.” Dame Kelly met Lord Etherton last month following an outpouring of support after she opened up to the Sunday Mirror.
She has heard stories of terrified veterans who were sexually abused in service then threatened with being outed if they reported it. Others suffered mental illness because of their Forces ordeal. But she knows many LGBT veterans will be wary of giving evidence.
Kelly said: “There are some who will have never spoken to anyone about this in their life, and speaking to someone about this is going to be traumatic and make them relive it.
“The other barrier is that some don’t trust that it’s independent and will protect your identity. But it is independent of the government, MoD and military.
“Some are also worried about the impact on their lives because maybe they haven’t yet come out, or never spoken about it. “Some of them hate what happened to them and
want nothing to do