WATCH: Global News has learned a review of sexual misconduct in the Canadian forces has been completed. As Vassy Kapelos reports it blames military leaders for ignoring the problem.
An independent external review on sexual misconduct in the Canadian military is expected to be released on Thursday, a month after the final report was delivered to the government.
A source familiar with the report told Global News that it faults the leadership for a sexualized culture within the military chain of command.
The external review was ordered by Gen. Tom Lawson, chief of the defence staff, to examine how the military deals with reports on incidents of sexual misconduct and sexual harassment. This is following an internal review that was done after Maclean’s and L’actualité published an article about sexual allegations in the military.
The magazine article reported that only about one in 10 assaults are reported but it’s likely there are about five incidents a day. The internal review was the military’s response to the issues revealed in the article, which claimed that there had been a decline in rates of sexual harassment for women since 1998.
The internal review did suggest creating an accountability framework for leaders to make them responsible for reporting their activities, as well as improving the reporting and tracking system, which in April 2014 was found to be “old and cumbersome.” With only a few recommendations the military concluded in their report that “a significant overhaul is not considered necessary.” The external review is said to be much more revealing and goes further into addressing prevailing issues.
READ MORE: Internal review of sexual misconduct in military says no to ‘significant overhaul’
“I don’t accept from any quarter the notion that sexual misconduct is any part of our military culture,” Lawson said in May 2014, when he provided the House of Commons defence committee with an internal review of workplace policies, programs and leadership engagement. But he did admit that there’s a problem with under-reporting.
According to military police there are more than 170 sexual assault complaints made each year. One of the complainants is Kristen Harms, who was 19 when she began the recruitment process in London, and was assaulted by military medic, James Wilks, during her medical exam. The incident happened in 2009, and she didn’t report what happened right away.
“I thought if I said anything it would ruin my chances at getting in,” Harms said.
Her story eventually came out as other female military recruits stepped forward and complained about Wilks assaulting them during the medical exam. In April 2014, he was tried in a military court and found guilty of 10 counts of sexual assault and 15 counts of breach of trust. He was sentenced to 30-months in prison, which he appealed immediately, and the judge ruled he would remain free until his appeal is heard.
Harms was disappointed with the result. “They’re trying to say that they want people to come forward but if you do come forward the person just gets a slap on the wrist and if anything you just humiliated yourself.”
Retired Colonel Michel Drapeau is a lawyer who specializes in military law and represents sexual assault victims. He says the problem is that these offenses need to be dealt with in a civil court, not by a military court.
“Let the civilian court - independent from the military – to do the investigation, to do the prosecution,” Drapeau said.
He also hears all too often from the women he represents that after they complain about the sexual assault they are then victimized and harassed by the chain of command.
“Why? Because they had the audacity to put into jeopardy the alleged esprit de corps and sense of cohesion,” he said adding that the military is not equipped to self-diagnose.
READ MORE: External report on sexual misconduct in military now with top soldier
The diagnosis in the upcoming report is coming from former justice of the Supreme Court, Marie Deschamps. She began conducting her review in June 2014, and has visited military bases across Canada, interviewed hundreds of members in the Canadian Armed Forces, and reviewed the policies that manage alleged complaints on discrimination and sexual assault.
Harms represents the story of just one victim of sexual assault within the military. She was never given support, even after Wilks was convicted in court, and has since left the military to become a diesel mechanic. Harms said she’s looking forward to seeing what comes out of the report. She hopes the policy for the medical check will be changed so that a female chaperon remains in the room. She also said there needs to be a policy that has someone in charge with dealing with sexual harassment complaints. While she was there she didn’t know what to do or who to talk to.
On Thursday, the public will learn from the report just how many other women in the military had to go through a similar experience.
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