Excerpted from article by Ashley Burke · CBC News · Posted: May 30, 2022
Military should give up control of sexual assault cases permanently: former Supreme Court justice
Military must adapt to a new reality – the women warriors are here to stay,’ says Louise Arbor.
The time has come for the Canadian Armed Forces to permanently give up control of investigations of sexual offences by its members, says a major new report by a former Supreme Court justice.
Concluding more than a year of work, Louise Arbour today released her much-anticipated report on the military’s sexual misconduct crisis. It recommends, among other things, that civilian police and courts handle all sexual assault cases involving allegations against military members.
“As challenging as it is, this organization must demonstrate enough humility to accept external help and open itself to the outside world,” wrote Arbour in the roughly 400-page report.
“Meaningful change will rest on the political will and determination of the civilians who oversee the CAF.”
Military sexual trauma complainants have been demanding for decades that civilians take over sexual misconduct cases, arguing that the Canadian Armed Forces has failed to properly support victims and to thoroughly investigate and prosecute cases.
Images of Canadian women soldiers in Afghanistan from AHM war artist files.
