OTTAWA – The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service (CFNIS) has concluded its investigation into whether any service or criminal offences were committed by Canadian Forces (CF) members in relation to the alleged sexual abuse of Afghan male children in Afghanistan by Afghan National Army and Afghan interpreters.
The investigation determined that CF Military Police in Afghanistan did not receive any complaints on the alleged sexual abuse of Afghan male children.
The CFNIS investigated whether any service or criminal offences were committed by Canadian Forces (CF) members in relation to the alleged sexual abuse of Afghan male children by Afghan soldiers and by interpreters employed by the CF. It was determined that the initial allegations concerning such incidents contained serious discrepancies, could not be corroborated, were not reported to the chain of command and ultimately were not substantiated.
The investigation found no evidence that any CF members committed any service or criminal offences in relation to the alleged sexual abuse of Afghan male children. The CFNIS has no jurisdiction over Afghan National Army or locally contracted interpreters in Afghanistan. It has jurisdiction over Canadian citizens employed as interpreters in Afghanistan as they are subject to the Code of Service Discipline.
"All allegations brought up to the Military Police are investigated in accordance with Canadian police standards,"
stated Lieutenant-Colonel Gilles Sansterre, Commanding Officer of the CFNIS. "The investigation was thorough; we interviewed all persons of interest, completely reviewed the Security and Military Police Information System and investigated whether any criminal or service offences were committed by CF members. The investigation concluded that no service or criminal offences were committed by CF members."
The CFNIS is an independent Military Police unit with a mandate to investigate serious and sensitive matters in relation to National Defence property, Departmental employees and Canadian Forces personnel serving in Canada and abroad.
Note to the editors: A Board of Inquiry (BOI) was also convened last October to examine and report on the circumstances surrounding the allegations made last June of assault by Afghan National Security Forces members in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, in late 2006 or early 2007. The BOI is a much broader process that looked at many issues including recommendations for changes to orders, directives, procedures and training if warranted. The BOI report was submitted to the Commander of the Land Force Doctrine and Training System (LFDTS) - the Convening Authority - on May 1, 2009 and is expected to be forwarded onto the Chief of the Land Staff (CLS) well before the end of May. After a lengthy formal review, the Board of Inquiry’s findings, results and recommendations will be made public, subject to the limitations on the release of information imposed by the Privacy Act, the Access to Information Act, and the Security of Information Act.
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