Victims of military sexual misconduct today receive an apology from Ottawa

The federal government, the Department of National Defense and the Canadian Armed Forces will deliver a formal apology to victims of military sexual misconduct today.

The apology was first promised in 2019 as part of a $ 600 million settlement agreement with current and former service members in various class action lawsuits.

The apology will come in three parts with Defense Minister Anita Anand speaking on behalf of the government.

Defense Chief of Staff Gen. Wayne Eyre will apologize for the military, while Deputy Minister of National Defense Jody Thomas will do the same for the department.

Officials had previously said they were looking forward to an in-person event, but the Defense Department says today’s apology will be delivered virtually and streamed online due to COVID-19.

The apology comes as the liberal government and military leadership grapple with a series of allegations of sexual misconduct involving senior officers.

The government had faced calls from the Royal Canadian Legion and others to deliver apologies before the 18-month deadline for victims to submit their claims as part of the settlement closed last month.

What people are reading

Nearly 19,000 claims were filed before the claims period ended on November 24, although Jonathan Ptak, an attorney representing victims in some of the six overlapping lawsuits, says victims can still file applications.

“Although the deadline to file was November 24, the settlement administrator has the discretion to extend this deadline by 60 days (until January 23, 2022) due to exceptional circumstances or due to the claimant’s disability.” Ptak said in an email.

“To date, many late claims have been accepted for consideration.”

More than 5,300 claims have already been approved for payment, while nearly 4,900 have also applied to participate in the “restorative compromise.”

This Canadian Press report was first published on December 13, 2021.