Beyond Vance and McDonald: sexual misconduct in the Canadian military
Bibi Imre-Millei, Assistant Editor Online
February 25, 2021
Sensitive Content Warning: This article discusses sensitive topics that may be upsetting to some. This includes sexual misconduct/assault mentioned in broad terms, with no specific details.
Credit to Hermes Rivera
The allegations against General Jonathan Vance and Admiral Art McDonald should serve as yet another turning point for the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF).
On February second, 2021, Global News broke the story that General Jonathan Vance, who retired as Chief of the Defence Staff in January, is facing allegations of inappropriate behaviour with women who were his subordinates. This news was shocking for some, as Vance was seen as a champion for women in the military and was the on to issue the order to initiate Operation HONOUR, the CAF strategy to eliminate harmful and inappropriate sexual behavior within its ranks. But for those like Charlotte Duval-Lantoine, who study the history of sexual misconduct in the CAF, this is part of a greater pattern of toxic leadership and culture which allows sexual misconduct to occur. In a Twitter thread, Duval-Lantoine noted that we should not be surprised by Vance’s alleged behaviour, “culture change has not occurred” she wrote. On February 21st, Global News published an interview with the woman behind the allegations against Vance. On February 24th, Global News broke that Art McDonald stepped aside from his post as current Chief of the Defence Staff due to an investigation of allegations of misconduct. By the morning of the 25th the Ottawa Citizen was reporting that a victim and a number of witnesses had come forward about sexual misconduct and other alleged behaviour.
The latest data from Statistics Canada surveys on sexual misconduct in the CAF point to a continued widespread problem. The solutions proposed since 2014 have all been very similar, and the CAF’s response each time has followed the same script: an assertion that sexual misconduct is taken seriously by the CAF, with little action to follow.
Since the 2015 report by Marie Deschamps, findings have centred around the following issues: a sexualized culture in the CAF which considers women and 2SLGBTQIA+ members as lesser; lack of trust in the chain of command; the use of sex to enforce power relationships; a long convoluted reporting process which is not survivor or victim centred; and the stigmatization of survivors and victims of sexual misconduct. Further findings, such as the Auditor General’s Report in 2018, which examined Operation HONOUR in its third year of implementation, and the report from the Standing Committee on the Status of Women in 2019, both pointed to the same recurring issues. These included further gaps in Operation HONOUR and the provision of services to survivors and victims, as well as issues with training. According to the Deschamps report, CAF members were confused about the terminology around sexual misconduct, especially when it came to power relations. Additionally, those delivering training were not properly trained themselves. Some servicemembers even felt trainers were complicit in sexual misconduct, as training is usually delivered by someone who is part of the command team at a unit. Command teams delivering training and being responsible for reporting could set up a scenario where the command team is more motivated to protect high-ranking perpetrators than survivors and victims. The Auditor General’s Report went further, claiming that military police were not trained on how to handle survivors and victims, and were also confused about definitions and procedures. The Standing Committee on the Status of Womenreported that training and information should be delivered in a more collaborative roundtable or town hall setting, instead of regular and regimented training sessions which have led to fatigue with the process in the past.
As Duval-Lantoine notes, a lack of progress on sexual misconduct stems from the need for leadership to protect the status quo. The issue of culture change in the CAF in order to make it a more welcoming place for women, racialized groups, Indigenous peoples, and 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals is a long-standing project which covers decades of trial and error. A long-term vision which involves the revamping of Operation HONOUR is needed, with outside guidance and oversight, a survivor-centric and intersectional approach, and a holistic and integrated focus which includes services not only for sexual misconduct, but for better support of underserved groups in the CAF in general. One aspect of this long-term vision which needs to be implemented immediately, is a change in training.
Training should be developed in close collaboration between the CAF and individuals or organizations with expertise in sexual violence prevention. Thanks to the reports on sexual misconduct in the CAF by Statistics Canada, there is a wealth of information about who is likely to be a survivor or victim, where and how misconduct is likely to take place, and how CAF members feel about organizational efforts to prevent sexual misconduct. The Statistics Canada reports should be leveraged into training, with customizable presentations for different needs. At the base level, presentations should be customizable depending on whether they are presented to the regular force, to the reserves, or at a military college, but ideally further customization on the basis of relevance should be incorporated. Training should not be run as a briefing, as per the Standing Committee on the Status of Women report, and should not be run by a CAF member, as per the Deschamps Report. Instead, a roundtable discussion, including a customized presentation of relevant statistics should be run by a trainer from a partner organization, who has been briefed on relevant materials by the CAF. CAF members should not be addressed as potential perpetrators, but should be encouraged to build empathy with survivors and victims instead; they should be guided through ways to challenge inappropriate behaviour interpersonally and through policy. Guidance should also come from organizations who work with men to build healthy models of masculinity.
What is proposed here is radical, the framing of Operation HONOUR means that most resources and avenues for redress are administered through the chain of command. The Sexual Misconduct Response Centre (SMRC), a centre of expertise that provides confidential support to CAF members, is an important first step in creating a more independent system of training and complaints. But the CAF has proved that it cannot resolve sexual misconduct internally, and more external oversight is needed.
The CAF should feel the urgency to make changes for a multitude of reasons. Of course, the moral argument that sexual misconduct hurts survivors and victims as well as those around them should be enough. But in the case of the CAF, there are also practical and optical reasons to combat sexual misconduct effectively. Sexual misconduct within institutions breaks down trust in leadership at a variety of levels, impacts servicemember wellbeing, and can be the cause for some to leave the CAF. A negative impact on operational effectiveness follows, as teams fracture and servicemembers lack commitment. Further, the CAF as a representation of Canadian society paints a grim picture of abuse of power and mistreatment of under-privileged and minority groups when it comes to sexual misconduct. The public has been witness to the CAF’s failures in dealing with sexual misconduct since at least 1998 when Macleans reported the stories of multiple survivors and victims. But failures are far older than the 1990s. Opinion polls done in partnership with the CAF in 2018 and 2019 confirm that the Canadian public has a poor perception of how the CAF treats underrepresented groups. Poor perceptions could hinder the CAF’s ability to reach their goal of 25% women in the CAF by 2026 and hurt the various strategies the CAF has employed to incorporate underprivileged groups in the military overall.
Continued failure in curbing sexual misconduct also has international implications. Canada has positioned itself as a leader on women, peace, and security issues worldwide. In 2016, Global Affairs released the first version of Canada’s feminist foriegn policy, and Strong, Secure Engaged, Canada’s defence policy as of 2017, put “well-supported, diverse, resilient people and families” as one of its main priorities. CAF operations have also included gender mainstreaming at home and abroad, such as during Operation IMPACT in Jordan.
The allegations against General Jonathan Vance and Admiral Art McDonald are a confirmation that the CAF must finally listen to experts and internalize their suggestions. One easy first step is collaborating on Operation HONOUR training with some of the many outside individuals and organizations who have committed resources to the effective prevention of sexual violence. Over the last six years alone, the CAF has had multiple moments like this one: turning points. This time the CAF must take calls for change seriously.