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Personal Injury Solicitors
Armed Forces suffering bullying and abuse at the hands of colleagues (3 February 2014)
Date: 03/02/2014
Data from the Armed Forces Continuous Attitude Survey has revealed an increase in bullying in the Armed Forces, including sexual assaults against female serving officers.
Defence Minister Anna Soubry has called the findings of the latest survey serious, with one in 10 serving personnel claiming to have been subjected to bullying and harassment in the course of carrying out their duties, according to a report in The Guardian.
A leading member of the Defence Select Committee has also called the figures very worrying – Labour MP Madeleine Moon has called for a review of the way in which the Ministry of Defence (MoD) handles complaints about sexual assaults and rape within the Armed Forces. Ms Moon is suggested an Ombudsman should be set up to handle Armed Forces complaints and enable Armed Forces personnel to report such complaints outside the chain of command within the MoD.
The survey is used by the MoD to monitor morale within the Armed Forces and in 2013 complaints about discrimination, harassment or bullying rose by four percentage points among junior staff and two percentage points among other staff – a 25% increase.
A total of 8% of staff who felt they had suffered abuse or bullying submitted a formal written complaint.
A total of 1,250 out of a total of 12,500 personnel who responded to the survey questionnaire said they had suffered abuse last year.
The MoD said that the Armed Forces took the issue of bullying “very seriously”:
“We recognise that it takes great courage for any individual to come forward and report a sexual offence – and we have taken a number of steps to improve training and awareness to ensure that service personnel know how to report concerns and what support is available to them,” said an MoD spokesman.
Labour MP Madeleine Moon said, however, that a number of serving female personnel in the Armed Forces had told her that when they had made complaints to the MoD abut sexual harassment in the Armed Forces, any investigation into their claims had been “blocked” by the military. Ms Moon said that women did not trust the military justice system as a result.
In 2011, a Royal Military Policewoman hanged herself after making a formal complaint that she had been raped by two fellow officers, but an internal inquiry led to no further action against the officers who had allegedly carried out the rapes. A fresh inquest into Anne-Marie Ellement’s death is due to open this week. The director of Liberty Shami Chakrabarti is representing Ms Ellement at the inquest.
Liberty has launched a campaign for military justice, saying that the military needs to admit the number of junior recruits who report having been raped by colleagues.
Duncan Lewis Personal Injury Solicitors
Duncan Lewis is a leading firm of personal injury and Legal Aid solicitors and can advise Armed Forces personnel on making MoD claims for injuries sustained in live combat or training exercises, including injuries sustained as a result of bullying, sexual assault or rape.
For expert advice on making a no win no fee MoD personal injury claim, contact Duncan Lewis Solicitors on 020 7923 4020.