Women's Views on News |
| Call for Deepcut public inquiry Posted: 21 Jun 2016 12:04 PM PDT
The human rights organisation Liberty has written to Defence Secretary Michael Fallon to request a public inquiry into physical and sexual abuse at the Deepcut barracks in Surrey. The call comes in the wake of the inquest into the death of Private Cheryl James, who died at Deepcut in 1995, which exposed to public scrutiny the toxic, violent and sexualised environment in which Cheryl and other young soldiers lived. The inquest and two BBC documentaries that followed the verdict have brought to light the accounts of many current and former soldiers who claim to have suffered physical violence and/or sexual abuse at the camp. Liberty has written to Fallon on behalf of the families of Privates Cheryl James, Sean Benton and James Collinson – three of the four young soldiers who died at Deepcut between 1995 and 2002 – who all support a public inquiry into the experiences of those who suffered and survived their time there. The Benton and Collinson families continue to press for thorough, independent inquests into the deaths of Sean and James. On 14 June it was announced that the Attorney General had sent the case of Sean Benton back to the High Court following an application by Liberty acting for the family that the original inquest be quashed and a fresh inquest ordered. The request is also made on behalf of former Deepcut recruits Mark Harrison, who was the victim of sexual assault and rape while serving at the barracks, and Daniel Griffiths, who alleges that he suffered a serious physical assault at the hands of a superior. The families and victims wish to see a thorough and independent investigation into: The large number of allegations made by servicemen and women about their treatment at Deepcut between 1993 and 2002; The sexualised culture at the barracks: Serious deficiencies in current legislation covering the Armed Forces, which mean members of the military are still not guaranteed a fair and independent investigation, should they report being the victim of crime; The toxic environment at Deepcut: Following its 2002-2003 investigation into the four deaths at Deepcut, Surrey Police presented the Army with a dossier of 118 separate "duty of care and bullying issues". The vast majority were alleged to have taken place at Deepcut, and many consisted of multiple incidents of abuse or witnessed abuse. Very few appear to have been tested or investigated. Delivering his verdict in the inquest into the death of Cheryl James on 3 June 2016, His Honour Judge Brian Barker CBE QC severely criticised many aspects of life at Deepcut in the mid-1990s. The inquest exposed that: There was little or no welfare provision; There were far too few staff to deliver training and meet their duty of care obligations towards young trainees, many of whom were vulnerable and living away from home for the first time; Many trainees had little to occupy them, and there was excessive, unsupervised access to alcohol even when underage; The chain of command appeared to have no training in dealing with issues affecting teenagers and young adults; and The environment was sexualised and language and attitudes were misogynistic. The Coroner emphasised that his inquest was not a public inquiry and that he could not investigate the physical and sexual violence individual recruits claimed to have experienced. Lessons are still to be learnt, as recent evidence revealed an ongoing, pervasive and deeply damaging culture of sexualised behaviour and harassment in the Armed Forces. Emma Norton, lawyer for Liberty and solicitor for the families of Cheryl James, Sean Benton and James Collinson, said: "The fact that these allegations were never properly investigated continues to cast a long and shameful shadow over the British Army and undermines genuine attempts at reform. "Without a public inquiry, those who describe serious assaults and other abuse at Deepcut will not have any chance to speak out about those experiences. "They deserve to have them acknowledged, see those responsible held to account and know that lessons really are being learnt so other young recruits do not suffer in this way again." And Mark Harrison, a victim of rape at Deepcut, said: "I was the victim of sexual assault and rape at Deepcut. "The man who did this to me was known by the Army to be a risk to young people because he had committed sexual offences before he came to Deepcut. Yet, even knowing this, the Army placed him in a position of trust where he was able to abuse me and others. "His actions changed my life forever and I still struggle deeply today as a consequence. As a soldier, when something like this happens to you, it is not just the terrible assault itself that you have to try and recover from – it is the knowledge that the Army, which you were prepared to devote your life to if necessary, put you in that position and abandoned you. "I want to be heard and I want to be assured that this could never happen again. A public inquiry is the only way this can happen." And Des James, Cheryl James's father, pointed out that the MoD had wasted many years avoiding a public inquiry into Deepcut and even denying that an abusive culture existed until very recently. "These are years that could have been used to reassure parents of future recruits, and years that could have been used compassionately to listen to and offer comfort to those recruits whose young lives have been so dreadfully affected," he said. "A public inquiry may finally draw a line under this dark stain on the reputation of the British Army." |
| Ministry of Justice survey for legal aid Posted: 21 Jun 2016 11:52 AM PDT
The Ministry of Justice is currently reviewing the domestic abuse evidence requirements for accessing legal aid in private family cases. The Ministry has issued a survey aiming ‘to capture the views of key stakeholders who come into contact with survivors of domestic abuse, and particularly those with experience of the process by which survivors can access legal aid in private family cases.’ The survey closes on 1 July and can be completed here. The Ministry wants to be confident that victims, or those at risk of domestic violence, are able to access legal aid and that the process for doing so is as straightforward as possible. Legal aid is available for victims, or potential victims, of domestic violence in private family cases, such as those concerning child or financial arrangements following a relationship breakdown. To qualify for legal aid, applicants must prove they have been, or are at risk of being, a victim of domestic violence by submitting at least one form of evidence from a prescribed list set out in legislation. The evidence must come from some point during the period five years before the application for legal aid (increased from two years in April 2016). A few examples of the types of evidence accepted are as follows: a relevant unspent conviction for a domestic violence offence; a letter from a health professional who has examined the person and is satisfied that they had injuries or a condition consistent with being a victim of domestic violence; a Domestic Violence Protection Order. Please note that, for the purpose of this survey, "domestic violence" means any incident, or pattern of incidents, of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (whether psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional) between individuals who are associated with each other. A victim of domestic violence is someone who is currently being abused, or someone who has been abused in the past, whether or not they are currently being abused. A person at risk of experiencing domestic violence is someone who has never experienced domestic violence but is at risk of being abused at some point in the future. This survey intends to capture the views of key stakeholders who come into contact with victims of domestic violence, and particularly those with experience of the process by which victims can access legal aid in private family cases. This survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete and covers the following: Your organisation's experience of working with victims of domestic violence and any experience you have of the legal aid evidence requirements; Your sense of the potential number of victims of domestic violence requiring legal representation to resolve private family matters; Your view on the most straightforward way for victims to evidence their violence; and/or Your thoughts on the current arrangements for obtaining legal aid in cases of domestic violence and whether there are obstacles that prevent individuals from fulfilling the evidence requirements. Participation in this survey is voluntary and all responses will be anonymised. Your responses will also be treated as confidential, and no organisation will be identifiable from the results. The Ministry would greatly appreciate receiving responses to this survey by 1 July 2016. |
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