The Canadian Armed Forces has failed to keep pace with the "values and expectations of a pluralistic Canadian society," and is facing an "existential crisis," according to a highly-anticipated report on sexual misconduct in the military..“Operating as a totally self-regulated, self-administered organization, entirely reliant on deference to authority, it has failed to align with the ever-changing, progressive society we live in," the report on the culture of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) said.."This disconnect is a liability for the CAF and for Canada.”.Former Supreme Court of Canada Justice Louise Arbour's blistering report into the culture of the CAF was released on Monday, exactly one year after the review began..The catalyst for the report was several allegations of sexual misconduct brought against high-ranking members of the CAF in February 2021. This reckoning lead to the downfall of Lt.-Col. Eleanor Taylor, former chief of defence staff Gen. Jonathan Vance, and Vance's successor Admiral Art McDonald..The 403-page report, which was shaped by 4,000 documents and hundreds of interviews and meeting with stakeholders, said the Canada's military faces an "existential crisis," that will require political will in order to change. .Arbour also said the CAF had not yet accepted the findings of the 2015 Deschamps report, which found sexual misconduct is “endemic” in its ranks. .On Monday, Canada’s Defence Minister Anita Anand said at a press conference that she would appoint an independent official to oversee the implementation of the 48 recommendations in Arbour's report..“The external monitor will report directly to me and will publish regular public reports. Our response to all of these recommendations will be clear open and collaborative," she said..Anand said she had already listed 17 of Arbour's recommendations that are in progress, or will be acted on immediately.."This is just the beginning of our response. We will act quickly to analyze, review, and plan our responses to each and every one of Madame Arbour’s recommendations,” Anand said..Chief among the recommendations are an emphasis on civilian review and transparency, which will include expanded details on how bureaucrats investigate allegations against senior governor-in-council appointees. The handling of a Privy Council Office examination into allegations against Vance was heavily scrutinized during parliamentary committee meetings in 2021..Arbour also recommended the military’s formal definition of sexual misconduct should be “abolished” as it currently too broad to capture everything from sexual assault and harassment, to the many microaggressions that are the “weapons of choice for the expression of discriminatory views, harmful stereotypes, and even unconscious biases.”.She said the military should bring its definition in line with the wording of the criminal code, and criminal code sexual offences should be removed from the jurisdiction of the CAF and prosecuted exclusively in civilian criminal courts..There are two things that could "derail" the path to significant changes in the CAF, according to Arbour.."The first would be to assume that this is only attributable to a culture of misogyny, and that change will come naturally with time and more enlightened attitudes. The second would be for the CAF to think that it can fix its broken system alone,” she said..Arbour also said the established way the CAF operates is anchored in imperatives that are often nothing more than assumptions.."One of the dangers of the model under which the CAF continues to operate is the high likelihood that some of its members are more at risk of harm, on a day-to-day basis, from their comrades than from the enemy. This must change."
