OTTAWA — Female service members and veterans are criticizing the way Canada’s military police investigate allegations of sexual assault and harassment in the ranks.
The women voiced their complaints today to the House of Commons committee on the status of women, which is grappling with how to eliminate sex misconduct in the armed forces.
Several women who say they were the target of such behaviour while in uniform told the committee they felt like they were being interrogated and otherwise unsupported when they met with police.
Air force technician Emily Tulloch described her experiences meeting with military police as “dreadful,” and that the current training for investigators needs to be “torn apart” and restarted.
Some of those appearing before the committee also raised concerns over how the rest of the military justice system handles cases of inappropriate and criminal sexual behaviour.
That includes often letting those accused of such conduct plead down to much lesser charges.