WASHINGTON – Sexual assaults in the military have been cut
in half in recent years, the Pentagon told Congress today, responding to
criticism from lawmakers who say the Defense Department is not
doing enough to address the issue.
“No war comes without costs, but the costs should be borne out
of conflict with the enemy, not by egregious violations by some of
our own troops,” said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine.
David Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel, said new
figures show the rate of sexual assaults against women in the
military fell from 6 percent to 3 percent between 1995 and 2002.
“It’s still too high, there’s still a long way to go, but it’s
down substantially from where we were,” Chu told a Senate Armed
Services subcommittee.
He said the most progress needs to be made in providing care to
victims.
Pentagon officials said there have been 106 reports of sexual
assault of troops deployed in the Middle East – including Iraq and
Afghanistan – over the past 14 months.
In the Army, there have been 86 reported cases. Investigations
have concluded in about half and 14 court-martials have been filed.
Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey Jr. said investigations
are harder to conduct when done in the midst of a military
operation.
Christine Hansen, executive director of the Connecticut-based
Miles Foundation, a support group for military victims of domestic
and sexual violence, said 68 women, most of them officers,
contacted her organization with stories of sexual assaults at the
hands of fellow members of the military. At least 13 had also
reported the assaults to military officials.
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has asked for a review of
sexual assault policies and the victim support network throughout
the department. He asked for a report by the beginning of May.
The inquiry was prompted by stories in The Denver Post that
thousands of sex offenders in the military had escaped punishment.
The reports documented accounts of numerous women who said they had
been raped or sexually assaulted while in the military and who said
military commanders were dismissive of the claims.
One change under review is having standard policies on sexual
assaults in all the military branches and providing uniform
services to victims, Chu said.
Officials said a Pentagon task force went to Sheppard Air Force
Base in Witchita Falls, Texas, where between 20 and 25 sexual
assaults were reported in the 2002-03 federal budget year.
The team investigated allegations that the military was
mishandling the complaints. Of the more than 5,000 people were
surveyed and 1,000 interviewed, at least 90 percent were confident
the processes in place, felt safe at the base and had confidence in
base commanders, said the Air Force’s vice chief of staff, Michael
Moseley.
Gen. William Nyland, assistant Marine Corps commandant, told
lawmakers that sexual assault violates “the deeply held values of
the corps and the military as a whole and will not be tolerated.”
The chairman of the Senate Armed Services said senators will be
supportive of the Pentagon’s reform efforts and watching them
closely.
“This committee is prepared to back the United States military
to achieve zero tolerance,” said Sen. John Warner, R-Va. “We’re
here to support you and if you don’t carry it out, we’re going to
take over.”
