Six British Soldiers Accused Of Sexual Assault

[Lanorth]

SOURCE: Source

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Six soldiers have been arrested over an alleged sex assault on a female soldier, it is being reported.

The teenager woke to find the men standing over her, said the Sun.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said he was "horrified" and there would be a wider review into "inappropriate behaviour in the military".

The paper says the men were questioned by military police. Five men were arrested last Friday night and a sixth on Monday morning, it added.

Mr Williamson said: "There is no place for these kind of actions in the military. If true, those involved must face the full force of the law."

He said he had commissioned a review into inappropriate behaviour in the military with a view to "stamping it out."

The chief of the general staff, General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, said inappropriate behaviour was "downright unacceptable".

He said: "We hold ourselves to a higher level of behaviour... and any behaviour that falls shorts of that high standard - we cannot and we will not tolerate.

"It stands in stark contrast with everything the British army represents, demonstrating an indiscipline that is wildly at odds with the values and standards that represent the fabric of not just our army, but the nation's army," he said.

The newspaper has claimed to know the name of the unit involved, but said it was not naming it for legal reasons.

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Honestly if the claims are true, I find it downright disgusting and something that should not be laughed at nor should it be taken lightly. If the claims are true, then the six soldiers should be thoroughly reprimanded for their actions. I think that they should be dismissed from the Army completely and frowned upon, in jail, hopefully. What are your opinions on the subject? What punishment, if the claims are true, do you think the soldiers will have to serve?

[Auristania]

OP, you are suppose to state your opinion and offer topics for debate.

I doubt serious applies BBC news says she woke up, screamed and the perverts all ran away. It certainly had the potential to be serious. But it wasn't.

If convicted, what should be the punishment?
I have only heard BBC news, I guess this deserves 1/3 the punishment: if standard rape punishment be 6 years gaol then then 2 years; if standard punishment be complete castration then one testicle; if standard be hanging with a 12 foot rope, then hang them with a 4 foot rope.

WTF this is supposed to be the Army? You are supposed to trust your comrades with your life. And you are trained to use rifles. If Sergeant rapes me, then wait for next battle and shoot sergeant.

[Thanatttynia]

I doubt serious applies BBC news says she woke up, screamed and the perverts all ran away. It certainly had the potential to be serious. But it wasn't.

We should probably hold off on such judgment if we don't know the details of the case. Regardless of whether it's 'serious,' these people should be disciplined thoroughly.

If convicted, what should be the punishment?
I have only heard BBC news, I guess this deserves 1/3 the punishment: if standard rape punishment be 6 years gaol then then 2 years; if standard punishment be complete castration then one testicle; if standard be hanging with a 12 foot rope, then hang them with a 4 foot rope.

I think two testicles is standard. Should it not be two thirds of one?

[Platypus Bureaucracy]

OP, you are suppose to state your opinion and offer topics for debate.

I doubt serious applies BBC news says she woke up, screamed and the perverts all ran away. It certainly had the potential to be serious. But it wasn't.

If convicted, what should be the punishment?
I have only heard BBC news, I guess this deserves 1/3 the punishment: if standard rape punishment be 6 years gaol then then 2 years; if standard punishment be complete castration then one testicle; if standard be hanging with a 12 foot rope, then hang them with a 4 foot rope.

WTF this is supposed to be the Army? You are supposed to trust your comrades with your life. And you are trained to use rifles. If Sergeant rapes me, then wait for next battle and shoot sergeant.

Presumably, those stories aren't describing exactly what happened, since "soldiers stand round other soldier's bed" would be a non-story. I would guess at least one of them was in the process of assaulting her.

[Western Vale Confederacy]

Wait, so she woke up and they were supposedly standing over her?

Were they actually performing sexual acts on her?

[Thanatttynia]

Wait, so she woke up and they were supposedly standing over her?

Were they actually performing sexual acts on her?

I doubt it, given that standing over someone's bad is not a 'sex attack'

[Farnhamia]

SOURCE: Source

---

Six British Army soldiers have been arrested after a female teenage soldier was allegedly sexually assaulted in her sleep. Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson is understood to be ‘appalled’ by the claims and has launched a review of behaviour across the military. Williamson said: ‘There is no place for these kind of actions in the military and, if true, those involved must face the full force of the law.’

The alleged attack was against a teenage army girl, who woke up find the men ‘standing over her’, according to the Sun.

She is said to have screamed after realising what was happening, which the newspaper said made the men, who were believed to have been drinking, flee. Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, said inappropriate behaviour was ‘downright unacceptable’.

He added: ‘It stands in stark contrast with everything the British Army represents, demonstrating an indiscipline that is wildly at odds with the values and standards that represent the fabric of not just our Army, but the nation’s Army.’ Five of the men were arrested by military police on Friday and a sixth on Monday morning.

They have been released under investigation. Carleton-Smith added: ‘All these allegations are being taken very seriously by the military chain of command and are now under active investigation by the police, which is exactly as it should be and what I expect. ‘Because of that it’s not appropriate for me to comment specifically any further on them. ‘But I will say this: where serious allegations are proven against members of the Army including allegations of a violent or sexual nature, it demonstrates indiscipline that is wildly at odds with the values and standards that represent the fabric of not just our army but the nation’s army, the British Army. ‘Not only is it downright unacceptable, it is illegal and it stands in stark contrast with everything the British Army represents. ‘The British soldier is known for many things: stoicism, a sense of honour and duty, courage, a sense of humour and an honest sense of decency. It’s what we expect of each other and it’s no less than the country expects and deserves of its army.

‘We hold ourselves to a higher level of behaviour and we do so because we bear a unique responsibility on behalf of the nation: to bear arms in defence of our country and our people.

‘And any behaviour that falls short of that high standard we cannot and will not tolerate.

‘This is everyone’s business, this is about who we are as professional soldiers and how we expect to treat each other and to be treated. At its heart sits respect, comradeship and self-discipline. ‘This hasn’t been a good week for the Army. It has damaged our reputation which is exceptionally hard earned and includes the sacrifice of our friends on the battlefield. ‘We all belong to a national institution, something the country is proud of and rightly so – the best of British.

And what are we supposed to discuss?

[Lanorth]

And what are we supposed to discuss?

I see what you mean. I'll edit it and add my opinion of it and what should be discussed. Sorry about this.

[The Two Jerseys]

If it literally happened as described, then I feel bad for those six soldiers since they're now going to have to be made examples of.

[Gormwood]

The lack of public outcry is unusual. Imagine if it had been six Muslim men.

[Lanorth]

Edited.

[LiberNovusAmericae]

The lack of public outcry is unusual. Imagine if it had been six Muslim men.

If it would have been six Muslim men it would have been glossed over like that grooming gang scandal.

[LiberNovusAmericae]

Wait, so she woke up and they were supposedly standing over her?

Were they actually performing sexual acts on her?

I've looked into it via other sources, and I still can't find out what act they did constituted a sexual one.

[Andsed]

Well if this is true they should be punished of course. If I am reading this right they were creepily staring at her in her sleep which while not as bad as say rape is very inappropriate and warrants stern punishment. Though I don't think that is really sexual assault. Illegal and should be punished? Yes. But I don't know if that counts as sexual assault.

[Gormwood]

The lack of public outcry is unusual. Imagine if it had been six Muslim men.

If it would have been six Muslim men it would have been glossed over like that grooming gang scandal.

Taking the example of a cover up on a local level to insist all Muslims are exempt from criminal prosecution are you?

[Western Vale Confederacy]

Wait, so she woke up and they were supposedly standing over her?

Were they actually performing sexual acts on her?

I've looked into it via other sources, and I still can't find out what act they did constituted a sexual one.

Even pumping a quick one over her would be considered sexual assault, but standing up around her, as fucking creepy and disturbing as it is...

That ain’t sexual assault.

[Andsed]

I've looked into it via other sources, and I still can't find out what act they did constituted a sexual one.

Even pumping a quick one over her would be considered sexual assault, but standing up around her, as fucking creepy and disturbing as it is...

That ain’t sexual assault.

Agreed unless the article meant something else when it said they were standing over her I don't this that counts as sexual assault. Still creepy and if true should warrant punishment though.

[Farnhamia]

And what are we supposed to discuss?

I see what you mean. I'll edit it and add my opinion of it and what should be discussed. Sorry about this.

Very good, carry on.

[Gormwood]

If they didn't actually touch her they should be disciplined for public indecency or whatever they have in that category.

[Ostroeuropa]

I think the article made a mistake in describing some of the events if they're not going to describe all of them.

Either leave it at "Accused of sexual assault", or tell the plaintiffs story (And the defendants if they are willing to comment), don't do it this way and create the impression she's accusing them of sexual assault for being near her bed while drunk.

The lack of public outcry is unusual. Imagine if it had been six Muslim men.

You're assuming they weren't Muslim soldiers.
No information is given on their demography.

----
Some breakdowns for OP;

9/10 Soldiers have heard a sex joke. 50% of the time, it is both men and women exchanging sex jokes. The overwhelming majority of soldiers do not care, though women are more likely to take offence than men. This is all defined as "Generalized sexualization.".

The most common form of actually problematic stuff "Targetted sexualization" (fuck the notion that sex jokes among personnel are a problem, get a grip, and even the report appears to imply this is the case by seperating it out and noting that it is literally a 50/50 chance the woman will find it funny and start firing back) is being sent "Sexual content" on phones and other devices, which I have to assume is basically dick pics or similar. 22% of all incidents involve this.

The gender proportion of offenders was 64-36. (Men-Women.).

The proportion of soldiers who view "Targetted sexualization" as a problem has increased to 7/10. (This is clearly a problem.).

5% of soldiers experienced targetted sexualization, and 4% of them said it had a negative emotional impact.
A further 5% said that they had not experienced, but had witnessed targetted sexualization, with 5% saying it had a negative emotional impact.
(This in itself is an interesting finding imo, if you compare the two stats there. My guess is that if you witness it and know what it is it's always going to have a negative impact, but if you witness it and don't know what it is or don't understand the harm it does, you would answer "Never seen it" to that question. Meanwhile, being sexually assaulted might leave some people just miffed briefly because whatever I have better stuff to do.).

8% of Servicemen and 21% of servicewomen experienced some form of targetted sexualization.

A majority of those affected who told the perpetrator to stop said it ended the situation without further problems.
(This also aligns with studies showing teaching confidence classes can decrease rape incidents by up to 50%.)

Despite the 2-1 (ish) perpetration rates, 150 investigations were against men, and 2 against women.

90% of victims said it had reduced their performance at work, meaning we're running at about 7% of servicemen and 18% of servicewomen who are compromised assets as a result of the behavior, reducing the efficacy of the army by about 10% overall if we assume a complete breakdown in their ability to be soldiers, which isn't the case.

More realistically we're looking at somewhere between 1 and 10% lost efficacy, i'd wager at the low end of that.

However, for comparison, billions can be spent to shift army efficacy even a single percentage point, so...

[Vassenor]

So we're complaining about how the men are the real victims here and how dare we not put them front and centre to be pitied?

[Kragholm Free States]

So we're complaining about how the men are the real victims here and how dare we not put them front and centre to be pitied?

Are you? Because it doesn't look like anyone else is saying that.

[Ostroeuropa]

So we're complaining about how the men are the real victims here and how dare we not put them front and centre to be pitied?

Who?

[Western Vale Confederacy]

So we're complaining about how the men are the real victims here and how dare we not put them front and centre to be pitied?

But what the fuck did they do aside from standing around her like a buncha creeps, though?

[Vassenor]

So we're complaining about how the men are the real victims here and how dare we not put them front and centre to be pitied?

Are you? Because it doesn't look like anyone else is saying that.

When the first line of Ostro's post is complaining that we're not being told -their- story? I disagree.