sexual misconduct in Canadian forces

[Anonymous]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/report-says-canadian-armed-forces-marred-by-sexualized-culture/article24187636/">http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/pol ... e24187636/">http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/report-says-canadian-armed-forces-marred-by-sexualized-culture/article24187636/

The Canadian Armed Forces are marred by a "sexualized culture" that disproportionately affects women and homosexual members, with junior officers frequently turning a blind eye to the hostile environment created by a spectrum of activities that goes from discriminatory jokes to sexual assault, a new report has found.



The report into "Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Harassment" in the CAF found a clear "disjunction" between the military ethos and the organization's policies, and the day-to-day reality faced by its members.



Women, in particular, suffer routinely from degrading expressions, sexual jokes and unwelcome touching – a situation that leads to clear cases of abuses in a number of circumstances, including date rape and inappropriate relationships between males and females of differing ranks.



"Cumulatively, such conduct creates an environment that is hostile to women and LGTBQ members, and is conducive to more serious incidents of sexual harassment and assault," the report said. "At the most serious extreme, these reports of sexual violence highlighted the use of sex to enforce power relationships and to punish and ostracize a member of a unit."



The problems are prevalent, with one member quoted as saying that "there is not a female who has not had a problem" since joining the Forces. The situation starts as soon as women enlist, according to the report, although "trainees are reluctant to call the behaviour of their trainers in question for fear of negative repercussions."



"The use of the word 'cunt,' for example, is commonplace, and rape jokes are tolerated. ... Ultimately, many women report having to develop a thick skin and to become desensitized to a culture of sexually inappropriate conduct," the report said.



Overall, the report found that "a large percentage" of cases of sexual assault and harassment are not reported, given fears that complaints will hurt one's career or not be treated confidentially.



"First and foremost, interviewees stated that fear of negative repercussions for career progression, including being removed from the unit, is one of the most important reasons why members do not report such incidents. Victims expressed concerns about not being believed, being stigmatized as weak, labeled a trouble-maker, subjected to retaliation by peers and supervisors, or diagnosed as unfit for work," the report said.



One of the main problems facing the Canadian Forces is a widespread perception that it is allowed to objectify women's bodies, make hurtful jokes and "cast aspersions" on female members.



"The [report] found that members appear to become inured to this sexualized culture as they move up the ranks," the report said. "Officers tend to excuse incidents of inappropriate conduct on the basis that the CAF is merely a reflection of civilian society. There is also a strong perception that senior [non-commissioned officers] are responsible for imposing a culture where no one speaks up and which functions to deter victims from reporting sexual misconduct."



The result of this situation is that some officers higher up in the chain of command "are genuinely unaware of the extent of the inappropriate sexual conduct that is occurring on the ground, the harm to individual members, and the damage to the CAF as a whole."



The report urges the Canadian Armed Forces to acknowledge the systemic nature of the problem, find ways to improve the integration of women in the military, and create an "independent centre for accountability for sexual assault and harassment" to oversee a new complaint process for inappropriate sexual conduct.



The head of the Canadian Forces promised quick changes in the organization, while also vowing to enact a long-term strategy to address the matters raised in the report.



"For an institution such as the Canadian Armes Forces, one built on camaraderie and trust, inappropriate sexual behaviour is utterly corrosive," General Tom Lawson, the Chief of the Defence Staff, said in a statement. "Exemplary conduct is part of the Canadian Armed Forces members' obligation to serve. We cannot accept anything less, and I will not accept anything less."



The External Review was overseen by Marie Deschamps, a former Supreme Court judge. It was based on interviews and discussions with 700 CAF members, of all ranks located in the various services across the country.



The report found that the training provided to CAF members on matters such as sexual harassment was ineffective. "Harassment training is laughed at, the course is too theoretical, and training on harassment gets lost among the other topics covered," the report found. "Current training lacks credibility and further perpetuates the view that the CAF does not take sexual harassment and assault seriously."



One of the major problems for women in the CAF is that they are not welcomed by all of their male colleagues. "Many men continue to hold negative attitudes about the presence of women in the military. For example, a commonly held attitude is that, rather than be a soldier, a sailor or an aviator, a woman will be labelled an 'ice princess,' a 'bitch,' or a 'slut.' Another saying is that women enter the CAF 'to find a man, to leave a man, or to become a man'."



However, the report found that many male members of the CAF are not aware of the problems facing their female colleagues. "Most men did not view sexual language as harassing, and thought that attempts to 'police' language would be 'ridiculous'; as one male participant states, 'girls that come to the Army know what to expect.'"



"The men and women who serve in the Canadian Armed Forces are required to make great personal sacrifices on behalf of their country. They should not also be required to tolerate violations of their dignity or security as a result of inappropriate sexual conduct," the report has concluded.

[Romero]

That's sad. It's pretty bad in the States too. Too much gung-ho attitude and superiors turning a blind eye.

[Anonymous]

That's sad. It's pretty bad in the States too. Too much gung-ho attitude and superiors turning a blind eye.

I understand soldiers perform work that is incomparable to no other job..



It is not for most people and it's not a career for the weak..



But, the forces cannot turn a blind eye to harassment.

[RW]

It's sensitively training time for our troops.

[Anonymous]

If we are talking about sexual advances with the threat of force, then yes zero tolerance is the policy needed. However, if we only talking about crude comments, then I say suck it up buttercup. If someone can handle that then they have prolly made the wrong career choice. It's tough work and n0ot for thin-skinned whiners. Florist or hairstylist might be a better fit.