External Review into Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Harassment in the Canadian Armed Forces - Recommendations

Marie Deschamps, C.C. Ad.E.

External Review Authority

March 27, 2015

Recommendation No. 1

Acknowledge that inappropriate sexual conduct is a serious problem that exists in the CAF and undertake to address it.

Recommendation No. 2

Establish a strategy to effect cultural change to eliminate the sexualized environment and to better integrate women, including by conducting a gender-based analysis of CAF policies.

Recommendation No. 3

Create an independent center for accountability for sexual assault and harassment outside of the CAF with the responsibility for receiving reports of inappropriate sexual conduct, as well as prevention, coordination and monitoring of training, victim support, monitoring of accountability, and research, and to act as a central authority for the collection of data.

Recommendation No. 4

Allow members to report incidents of sexual harassment and sexual assault to the center for accountability for sexual assault and harassment, or simply to request support services without the obligation to trigger a formal complaint process.

Recommendation No. 5

With the participation of the center for accountability for sexual assault and harassment:

• Develop a simple, broad definition of sexual harassment that effectively captures all dimensions of the member’s relationship with the CAF.
• Develop a definition of adverse personal relationship that specifically addresses relationships between members of different rank, and creates a presumption of an adverse personal relationship where the individuals involved are of different rank, unless the relationship is properly disclosed.
• Define sexual assault in the policy as intentional, non-consensual touching of a sexual nature.
• Give guidance on the requirement for consent, including by addressing the impact on genuine consent of a number of factors, including intoxication, differences in rank, and the chain of command.

Recommendation No. 6

With the participation of the center for accountability for sexual assault and harassment, develop a unified policy approach to address inappropriate sexual conduct and include as many aspects as possible of inappropriate sexual conduct in a single policy using plain language.

Recommendation No. 7

Simplify the harassment process by:

• Directing formal complaints to COs acting as adjudicators in a grievance
• Reducing emphasis on ADR.

Recommendation No. 8

Allow victims of sexual assault to request, with the support of the center for accountability sexual assault and harassment, transfer of the complaint to civilian authorities; provide information explaining the reasons when transfer is not effected.

Recommendation No. 9

Assign responsibility for providing, coordinating and monitoring victim support to the center for accountability for sexual assault and harassment, including the responsibility for advocating on behalf of victims in the complaint and investigation processes.

Recommendation No. 10

Assign to the center for accountability for sexual assault and harassment, in coordination with other CAF subject matter experts, responsibility for the development of the training curriculum, and the primary responsibility for monitoring training on matters related to inappropriate sexual conduct.