Madam Speaker, I am pleased to speak to this motion. For months, we have heard through the media allegations of sexual misconduct within the Canadian Armed Forces and the complicity of the Minister of National Defence. This prompted the Standing Committee on the Status of Women to launch a study into sexual misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces, which we just concluded and the committee report was tabled today.

Many of the FEWO study witnesses spoke of the Canadian Armed Forces' challenges with repeated sexual misconduct incidents, with one witness noting, “I joined the Canadian Armed Forces in July of 2018. Since then, I feel like I've experienced a lifetime's worth of sexual assault and misconduct.”

Another witness who appeared before the committee gave a very interesting perspective on the double standard that the military justice system has toward women and men. The witness discussed how when they were deployed in Afghanistan an investigation had been conducted into a consensual relationship she had with a U.S. officer who was not in her unit but was of the same rank. She admitted that the relationship she had was against regulations and that she had pleaded guilty to the charges. She was fined, repatriated from theatre and posted out of her unit. She accepted this as her punishment.

However, as a result, she was called demeaning names and was told she was not worthy of leading soldiers. She said she was threatened with violence by commanding officers and would be repeatedly chastised by other officers. She was sent to work alone in an office managing a single Excel spreadsheet, and it quickly became clear to her that her career in the Canadian Armed Forces was over.

When she left the military, she had originally been given an offer to go into the reserves, but that was revoked upon her leaving, with the commanding officer telling her she was not the type of leader he wanted in his unit. She said that her biggest failure in life was how she was pushed out of the armoured corps, and that is something she continues to carry immense shame for.

However, this is precisely the type of leadership displayed by the former chief of the defence staff, who served as the longest-serving chief of the defence staff. This former CDS, General Vance, not only rolled out Operation Honour, but at the same time was having inappropriate relations with those under his command.

That included one woman who, when she appeared before FEWO, mentioned how she had asked questions about who would have the ability to investigate actions against the chief of the defence staff and whether the CFNIS would be the appropriate body. The response the general gave her was that he was “untouchable” because he owned the CFNIS. It was deeply concerning to hear that someone would actually believe he was above the law and would be willing to create an unsafe work environment and felt he could not be investigated. To this day, this woman believes she is not going to get justice for herself, but that it was important for her to come forward so the issue could be dealt with, with the aim that other women in the military would be able to get justice. It is not hard to see why this witness would believe that.

Over this past weekend, we heard that while under investigation, General Vance went golfing with Vice-Admiral Baines and Lieutenant-General Rouleau, who himself held oversight authority for the military police. The abuse of authority and the flagrant disregard for women in the Canadian Armed Forces are completely disgusting.

Shortly after a witness appeared before our committee, a Facebook group of military police were making comments such as “If you sleep with a senior rank you get good postings and promotion to support the bastards but no parenting and support from the senior rank”. Another said, “Giggity”, while another said, “Her story is about as clear as a PMQ orgy party on pay day.” It is no wonder women do not feel safe in our Canadian Armed Forces.

What makes this worse is that all of this occurred under the watch of this minister, who, to this day, has yet to take any responsibility for his role in allowing for this toxic culture to exist.

When the minister appeared before committee, my colleague said to him, “[Y]ou're not owning up to the reality that you're not taking action to create a shift in the culture.... [T]he longer you continue to dodge responsibility this way or that—it's not going to change.... If you keep repeating the same points—I'm just sensing you're still not owning up to this”. The minister just kept repeating the same points. He did not take any responsibility for the actions of the General Vance investigations.

As was pointed out to our committee:

...General Vance had to be protected because he was seen as a rising star during his career and therefore a good move for the military. It wasn't in the interest of the Forces to cast him aside or investigate him due to an allegation of sexual misconduct or assault. You don't want to tarnish the career or cause the loss of a valuable co-worker who is your right-hand man, for example. So General Vance's superiors or peers certainly had an interest in hiding these things, because they liked his work, operationally speaking.

Canadians expect our ministers to represent all Canadians, work to defend all Canadians and support all Canadians. However, all the minister has done is protect and excuse the inexcusable, and he has sent a message to all those serving in uniform that as long as one is a man, a friend and high enough in rank, one can sexually assault someone and the minister will turn a blind eye on it. This is not my Canada.

A fundamental change within the Canadian Forces with regard to its toxic culture and sexual misconduct issues is needed to ensure the safety and success of its members. Our brave service members deserve better. Conservatives are committed to ensuring that change occurs in the Canadian Armed Forces and will continue to hold the government to account on its shortcomings on this file, including and especially the need to take responsibility for the ongoing leadership crisis and the harm it has caused.

As a woman, it broke my heart to listen to the witnesses come forward and tell their stories, and how they continue to live with the trauma of sexual misconduct and sexual assault months, years and decades later. We constantly heard from witnesses about how tiring and disrespectful it is to continue to just talk about this issue. These are conversations we have had for decades.

All of the survivors spoke of the urgency to bring about cultural change, but they and military academics highlighted the requirement of having the most senior leadership, including the minister, involved directly in this change.

What we have seen from the minister is an abdication of his responsibilities in bringing about this change. He testified at committee that even prior to being appointed minister he was aware of this issue. If he truly was aware of this issue and the significance of it, then why has he sat silently on the sidelines while women have suffered significantly under his watch? Why did he turn a blind eye when his buddy, the former chief of the defence staff, was placed under investigation? Why does the minister continue to refuse to bring about true cultural change instead of yet another report?

I guess it is true what they say about Liberals. There is not a problem in the world they cannot solve by just having another report written. The time for reports is over. Women need action now, and we can start by getting rid of this inefficient minister, who places friendship over the security of individuals.

Jag Sahota

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