Sexual misconduct is on the rise in the Canadian military according to Statistics Canada, despite recent ongoing efforts to change the culture. A report of 48 recommendations was released in an external review last year by former Supreme Court Justice Louis Arbour.
This includes removing military jurisdiction over Criminal Code sexual offences.
However, the trend is not looking good as Stats Can says roughly 1,960, around 3.5% of Regular force members were sexually assault in 2022; 1.6% higher than in 2018.
The incidents were higher among women at 7.5%, Indigenous members and those who are not heterosexual at 8.8% as well as those who were younger and had disabilities.
However, Federal Defence Minister Bill Blair says the federal government is committed into bringing about a change.
“We do understand our responsibility to create a respectful, inclusive and safe environment for every member of the armed forces,” Blair said.
Blair says it comes down to regulation, legislation but mostly how they recruit and how they support diverse voices.
Meanwhile, Lt.-Gen. Jennie Carignan said the numbers that we are seeing in the survey is clear indication of the work that needs to be done.
“We are of course very concerned with the statistics and data that is coming to us via the survey…and this clearly illustrates the urgency in continuing the work that we are currently doing in that space,” Carignan said.
Carignan added that these numbers need to be balanced with other research and surveys they have ongoing so they can get a clear view of the situation.
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