A full Garda investigation should be carried out into alleged sexual assaults on female soldiers, the Women of Honour said yesterday.
The organisation spoke out after reports at the weekend of a sexual assault by a male officer at the Defence Forces headquarters.
The group – made up of former soldiers – stated it is “absurd” that the investigation will remain within the military system.
The Women of Honour compared the situation to the system which operated within the Catholic Church in which canon law was applied in horrific cases of sex abuse.
At the weekend it was reported a female soldier was allegedly sexually assaulted at McKee Barracks in Dublin on June 25, 2020.
It is understood the Military Police have filed a report to the Director of Military Prosecutions following an investigation.
But yesterday the Women of Honour said a statutory inquiry is necessary. In a statement it added: “The weak review proposed by Minister Coveney will be ineffective and powerless to get to the real heart of the issues.
It is absurd that issues such as alleged sexual assaults and abuse still remain to be dealt with within the military system.
“The Military Police, in reality, are subject to the chain of command and act on behalf of the Defence Forces, investigate internal matters and then send a file to the Director of Military Prosecutions.
“It remains the case that the military legal system applies military law to address matters – of the military, by the military and for the military.
“Allegations such as those revealed at McKee Barracks should not remain within the military system to investigate and where necessary, serve justice. A similar regime was operated within the Church in which canon law was applied in horrific cases of sex abuse.
“It was not tolerated there and it should not be tolerated in the Defence Forces either.
“It is time for an independent public statutory inquiry and for the civil and criminal laws of the state to be applied to the Defence Forces.
“The national laws that apply to the rest of the citizens of our State should apply to the men and women of our Defence Forces.
“Allegations such as those at McKee Barracks must be removed from the Military and Defence Establishment in order to prevent the closing of ranks, as is part of normal procedure, in retribution against anyone seeking justice.
“The frequency of such dreadful allegations, the continuance of them and the repeated failures to deal with them and the resultant toxic culture of acceptance, cover-ups and victim blaming, merits nothing less than a public statutory investigative process as a first step toward the radical change needed.”
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