Nearly 1,000 sex assaults reported in Canada military last year

[Stelio Kontos]

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ca...-idUSKBN13N1MV

Some 960 members of the Canadian military reported being victims of sexual assault in the last year, and 27 percent of women in the armed forces have been sexually assaulted during their career, Statistics Canada said on Monday.

The landmark survey, commissioned by the military, found 1.7 percent of regular force members of the military had been sexually assaulted in the last 12 months, nearly double the 0.9 percent rate of sexual assault among working Canadians.

According to the Statistics Canada survey, 840 military members reported unwanted sexual touching, 150 reported sexual attack, and 110 sexual activity without consent in the 12 months before the survey was conducted.

The survey, which garnered more than 43,000 responses and a 61 percent response rate among regular force members, found that women were four times more likely than men to report being sexually assaulted in the last year.

Women make up about 15 percent of Canada's armed forces.

Chief of Defence Staff General Jonathan Vance said the results of the survey were both expected and sobering.

"Harmful sexual behavior is a real problem in our institution. We know it, and we are trying to tackle it head on," Vance told a news conference.

"I'm more motivated than ever to eliminate this behavior and the perpetrators from our ranks."

Vance launched Operation Honor, a military program to address sexual offenses, in 2015 after an external investigation said the Canadian Armed Forces had an underlying sexualized culture hostile to women and gays.

Western militaries are increasingly coming under scrutiny for their handling of sexual offences. A Pentagon report in May said sexual assaults in the U.S. military are still underreported.

The Canadian survey showed female victims were far more likely to be sexually assaulted by someone in authority, with 49 percent of women assaulted in the last 12 months identifying a supervisor or someone in a higher rank as the perpetrator. In contrast, 56 percent of male victims identified a peer as the perpetrator, the report showed.

Eight in 10 respondents reported seeing or hearing inappropriate sexual or discriminatory behavior, including jokes, unwanted comments, sexually explicit material being shared or displayed, insults, or pressure for dates or relationships, the report found.

This is sad and shameful. What can Canada do to better itself on this issue?

[Malacrass]

If Tennisface is Captain Planet, are you Captain Pollution?

[jimboa24]

Canada has a military? And here I was thinking that all they had were mounties that rode around on mooses rescuing damsels tied up on railroad tracks.

[Xandrigity]

Canada has a military? And here I was thinking that all they had were mounties that rode around on mooses rescuing damsels tied up on railroad tracks.

Maybe it was the moose doing it?

[Wolfheart9]

Didn't the US have something like 6k reports last year?

[Deleted]

This is impossible. Tennisace would have taken serious actions against that after only 2 assaults.

[Daymanmb]

Didn't the US have something like 6k reports last year?

Population relativity? And if it is still a higher ratio in the end, does that somehow make 1k assaults suddenly okay? The argument, "well, theyre worse than we are.." isnt the most compelling.

[Wolfheart9]

Population relativity? And if it is still a higher ratio in the end, does that somehow make 1k assaults suddenly okay? The argument, "well, theyre worse than we are.." isnt the most compelling.

I didn't at all say it made it okay, nor made any argument whatsoever. I asked a question as I wasn't sure if it was exact, and as the US's reports didn't make headlines, I'm curious as to why this had. Nothing makes it right, just like the amount of gun kills, drug OD cases, or any other horrible thing makes it better.

[GennGreymane]

@Tennisace

D: what are we gonna dooooooooo

[Brangh]

To try and stay on topic, this is probably endemic with any hierarchy with a pecking order and a closed process. And probably very similar in how they occur and are treated in private businesses and mandatory arbitration.

[Forgettable]

@Tennisace Please save us!

[May90]

Didn't the US have something like 6k reports last year?

This can't be right. Florida alone has around 10m Florida men!

[Belize]

Canada has a military? And here I was thinking that all they had were mounties that rode around on mooses rescuing damsels tied up on railroad tracks.

We have the world's finest stealth snowmobiles (I shit you not)

[Eleyne]

When I saw what the officer said, I thought to myself -- "Ohhh, nooo! you just triggered people's rebellious nature."
Usually if you forbid people to do something, they would want to do more of it. Sounds childish, and many adults would deny it, but this is more or less a human nature.
I hope they won't emphasize this topic to the new recruits and make them realize that they have such an option.

[dd614]

This is impossible. Tennisace would have taken serious actions against that after only 2 assaults.

He would have executed the culprits publically at the behest of Emperor Trudeau, but only if they were overweight.

[Allerius]

@Tennisace seems like things are getting a lot worse under Trudeau. This is a sad and himiliating day for Canada. It seems Canada is in desperate need of new leadership.

[Danuru]

Maybe they thought saying "Sorry" afterwards makes it better?

[Xandrigity]

@Tennisace seems like things are getting a lot worse under Trudeau. This is a sad and himiliating day for Canada. It seems Canada is in desperate need of new leadership.

Clearly tennisace should lead Canada.

[Stelio Kontos]

It's a shame Tennis can't tell us how to solve this very important problem

[Yvaelle]

We have the world's finest stealth snowmobiles (I shit you not)

Stealth snowmobiles were a big waste of military spending IMO.

The stealthiest snow-transport is still the Moose, it's dead silent, runs entirely off berries and leaves - refuelable anywhere in the Canadian wilderness - and it emits a haunting battlecry when you are ready to cavalry charge your enemies on moose-back.

Stealth snowmobiles were a waste of money, we should have spent that money training orcas to act as our Stealth Delivery Vehicles:



So that our special forces can ride Orcas into combat, because that would be badass.