OTTAWA - The federal Liberal government is tapping former Supreme Court justice and UN high commissioner for human rights Louise Arbour to lead what it is billing as an independent review of the military’s handling of sexual assault, harassment and other misconduct. Many questioned the need for yet another review more than six years after another retired Supreme Court justice, Marie Deschamps, released an explosive report on the extent of sexual misconduct in the Armed Forces. The government instead allowed for the creation of a sexual misconduct response centre, a civilian-run body focused primarily on victim support and training but with no oversight powers. “The last thing the CAF needs right now is another external review,” Megan MacKenzie, who studies military sexual misconduct at Simon Fraser University, said in an email. West suggested the military leadership in place now is better placed to deal with the issue of sexual misconduct than when Deschamps’s report came out in 2015.

Source: thestar April 29, 2021 09:02 UTC