As Ottawa works to move on interim recommendations on the embattled military justice reform file, expectations for the Department of National Defence’s long-awaited victim bill of rights have heightened.
But given the department’s lag in bringing laws passed by Parliament into force, one retired colonel warns it should not be afforded such an “open ticket” with its spring timeline, which another former member of the military said is leaving many survivors “in limbo.”
Speaking to Parliament Today, military law expert Michel Drapeau said the department should follow Defence Minister Anita Anand’s lead in acknowledging the urgency of finalizing regulations for the declaration of victim rights, which were called for in Bill C-77.
In one of her first acts in the portfolio, Anand signalled her support of a recommendation to move investigations and prosecutions of sexual misconduct cases to the civilian system last week — a widely praised step that Drapeau earlier described as close to a “silver bullet” if there ever was one. (Canada has a separate military justice system from the civilian regime that since 1998 has initiated legal cases involving sexual offences.)
Passed in June 2019, Bill C-77 introduced a declaration that victims of service offices “have a right to information, protection, participation and restitution,” and enshrines they will have access to services like a victim liaison officer. But more than two years later, it has yet to come into effect.
With the feds having long been accused of dragging their feet on addressing the sexual misconduct crisis that has gripped the military in recent months, there remains “no reason whatsoever, none,” for the department to continue punting regulations down the line, said Drapeau.
“I don't care if they need to take four or five or six people together — get it done,” he said yesterday. “At any effective law office, you would get this done within a week or two.”
He said he is “unsatisfied” with a June indication from Judge Advocate General Geneviève Bernatchez, the official charged with overseeing the drafting of the document, that the bill of rights will kick into effect “no later than” the spring.
“Spring 2022 means anything between April 1 and June 20. It’s vague and they’ve had enough time,” said Drapeau, noting a plethora of more than 200 lawyers on its legal team can be tapped to draft up such a blueprint.
For Dawn McIlmoyle, who made headlines in the 1990s while going public with her account of being raped by a colleague while enrolled in naval school, the declaration needs to come into effect in lockstep with the transfer of authority Anand committed to.
“Everything is going to change so people are worried about if their case is going to fall through the cracks, getting switched over,” she said. “What if their case was already in the military process? There’s a lot of uncertainty. … Bill C-77 should be right with it.”
Being able to request access to a liaison officer would be critical as it would act as “bridge” to the two “worlds,” said McIlmoyle, who now works as a veteran and abuse advocate. “You wouldn't be dealing with a system you're not really familiar with all on your own,” she said, adding it can be a “horrendous” process to navigate the structures.
“I’m hoping that they’re doing better but while we wait, how many people are being injured in some way with sexual misconduct?” wondered McIlmoyle.“I want my pain to be used for purpose, so I want something good to come out of everything that has happened. I need to see concrete things, not just dates flowing in the wind.”
