Canada’s military is dishonoured again

“It is recommended that The National Defence Act, as a matter of high priority, be amended to establish an independent review body, the Office of the Inspector General, with well-defined and independent jurisdiction and comprehensive powers … The Inspector General would receive and investigate complaints about officer misconduct and about possible injustices to individuals within the Canadian Forces … including: abuse of authority or position (for example, failure to investigate, failure to take corrective actions, or unlawful command influence); and improper personnel actions (for example, unequal treatment of Canadian Forces members, harassment including racial harassment, failure to provide due process, reprisals) … Among the Inspector General's functions would be to correct or assist in correcting injustices to individuals.” Nearly a quarter-century ago, this was a central recommendation in “Dishonoured Legacy: the Lessons of the Somalia Affair: the Report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces to Somalia”—a 2,000-page report, two and a half years and $25-million in the making. Then, as now, the Canadian Forces’ leadership was accused of fostering a culture that led to abuses of authority, in this case culminating in the murder and alleged cover up of a Somali youth in the custody of the Canadian Airborne Regiment during Canada’s mission to Somalia in the early 1990s. The Commission’s recommendation for an independent, civilian inspector general enshrined in statute was rejected by the government of the day. Instead, a Canadian Forces ombudsman, who serves on good behaviour, was established. The ombudsman is now at the centre of a controversy for reporting to the minister of national defence a sexual harassment complaint against General Jonathan Vance, the former chief of defence staff. The government argues the ombudsman should not have brought the complaint to the minister, but rather should have taken it to other authorities. Herein lies the dilemma. The ombudsman, who reports to and is accountable to the minister, can receive complaints, conduct investigations, and make recommendations, but has nowhere near the independence, stature, resources, and investigative and redress authorities that the Somalia Commission envisioned in an inspector general. The public image of the Canadian Armed Forces in the 1990s was seriously damaged by the Somalia scandal. Former chief of defence staff Rick Hillier infamously labelled those years “the decade of darkness.” Hillier was referring chiefly to the deep cuts in defence funding that occurred post-Somalia, but the darkness also had something to do with the fallout from Somalia and the resulting diminished standing of the military among Canadians. The Somalia scandal caused the military to fall into disrepute, which probably made it easier for the government to cut defence funding significantly in the 1990s. It was only through the sacrifices the Canadian Forces made in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014 that the reputation of Canada’s military was restored to its place as one of the pre-eminent institutions in the country. That hard-won respect is at risk again today, owing to mounting allegations of sexual misconduct and abuse of power directed at several of the most senior officers in the Canadian Armed Forces. The military culture is on trial for the second time in a generation. A lot has changed for the better inside Canada’s military since the Somalia scandal. But today’s harassment and abuse of authority allegations against the leadership suggest deep-seated cultural problems remain embedded in the institution. Twenty-five years ago, it was thought that an inspector general was a step too far, too independent, too much civilian oversight of the chain of command. The recommendations of royal commissions and commissions of inquiry are often rejected by governments because they are ahead of their time. But in 2021, the time has probably come for the establishment of an inspector general along the lines recommended by the Somalia Commission all those years ago. Eugene Lang is adjunct professor, School of Policy Studies, Queen’s University, and fellow, Canadian Global Affairs Institute. He served as chief of staff to two ministers of national defence in the Chrétien and Martin governments. The Hill Times CORRECTION: This article was updated to reflect that the Canadian Forces ombudsman serves on good behaviour, not at pleasure.

Canada’s military is dishonoured again

Twenty-five years ago, it was thought that an inspector general was a step too far, too independent, too much civilian oversight of the chain of command.

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Canada’s military is dishonoured again

Twenty-five years ago, it was thought that an inspector general was a step too far, too independent, too much civilian oversight of the chain of command.

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Only $7.76 a week for an annual subscription.

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