Sexual Assault Report "Take it lightly" US Military Academy Covering up "Family Ugliness" Critic Sexual Assault | Guard | Family Ugliness
Beijing, July 1st (Xinhua) - The US Coast Guard publicly apologized on June 30th, admitting that one of its subordinate military academies received multiple reports of sexual harassment and assault years ago and failed to "properly handle" them, and did not fully disclose the results of its internal investigation.
On May 24, 2017, in New York, the United States Coast Guard patrol ship Hamilton participated in the New York Fleet's weekly ship parade. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Wang Ying
According to the Associated Press, in 2014, the Coast Guard Bureau of Investigation decided to expand its investigation into a sexual harassment incident that occurred at a military school under its jurisdiction to include incidents of sexual harassment and assault involving or involving students at the school from 1988 to 2006. This internal investigation lasted for 6 years and ended in 2020. However, the Coast Guard did not publicly disclose the results of the investigation until it was exposed by CNN in June of this year.
"Handle with care" for promotion as usual
Internal investigations by the Coast Guard have found that in more than 60 confirmed cases of sexual assault and harassment, many perpetrators who were supposed to undergo criminal investigation were only given administrative sanctions, while those with lighter punishments only needed to do additional homework or were demoted to lower class rankings; Some perpetrators even held high positions in the Coast Guard or other military systems afterwards, while many victims were forced to leave the troops and bury their future.
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The investigation found that the school did not properly handle reports of sexual assault and harassment, and did not bring the perpetrators to justice; The school is concerned about reputation and face, not the physical and mental trauma of the victims.
Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell and Tammy Baldwin jointly wrote a letter to the Coast Guard on June 30, requesting an explanation for concealing the internal investigation. The two said that the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee responsible for regulating the military academy in question only recently learned about this internal investigation. The two demanded that the Coast Guard hand over relevant investigation documents and a list of personnel involved.
Cantwell and Baldwin said that to their knowledge, at least two reported cadets at the military academy were still promoted during internal investigations, "at least once," and retired with high military ranks; When the Coast Guard submitted personnel appointment materials for such reported individuals to the relevant Senate committee, they did not inform them that there were "issues".
Covering up the frequent occurrence of "domestic ugliness" and obscene rumors
The above-mentioned military academy is located in Connecticut. Senator Chris Murphy of the state accused the military academy of covering up "family shame" and called for the revocation of its leadership position. Connecticut Congressman Joe Courtney said that the military academy is under review for its inadequate response to cases of racial discrimination, and their lack of transparency and accountability is deeply disappointing.
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The US Coast Guard issued a statement on the 30th apologizing to victims of sexual assault and harassment. The statement acknowledges that the Coast Guard's officer school involved did not take appropriate measures to address the relevant reports, did not punish the perpetrators as they should have, and did not promptly disclose the investigation results, which may have further traumatized the victims.
On May 27, 2017, at West Point Military Academy located in northern New York, students threw their hats into the air to celebrate graduation. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Wang Ying
In recent years, there have been frequent sexual assault scandals in US military academies, causing public outrage. The United States has repeatedly urged military academies to rectify, but so far, no results have been achieved. According to an annual report released by the US Department of Defense in March this year, the total number of reported sexual assault incidents in military academies in the United States for the 2021-2022 academic year reached its highest since records began in 2006. On average, one out of every five female students reported experiencing "involuntary sexual contact" during that academic year.