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Canadian military’s new plan to fight misconduct includes culture officers, training

Jul 12, 2021 | 12:47 PM

OTTAWA — Canadian Armed Forces commander Lt.-Gen. Wayne Eyre says the military’s new plan to fight misconduct will include posting “culture officers” to warships, holding workshops with survivors, and launching a promised restorative justice program in the fall.

Eyre listed those and other measures in an update to the troops today, in which the acting chief of the defence staff underscored the need to change the military’s culture.

He says he recently told military leaders that the institution’s current difficulties are an opportunity for real change — and that everyone in uniform should recognize the need for it.

Eyre is also promising to launch reforms to the military justice system in the coming months.

The military has been going through a reckoning following allegations of sexual misconduct involving top commanders and concerns that some members subscribe to hateful ideology.

Eyre says he expects setbacks, mistakes and disappointments as the military tackles such problems, but that he also wants leaders at all levels to do what is needed to ensure success.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 12, 2021.

The Canadian Press