Latest news with #HCITS
Global News
11-08-2025
- Politics
- Global News
Hateful conduct reports in Canadian military rising after years of decline
The Canadian military saw a rise in reported incidents of hateful conduct last year, reversing a years-long trend of declining reports, internal data suggests. The data, obtained by Global News from the Department of National Defence (DND), has both former military members and outside experts warning of a persisting issue of extremism in the Canadian Armed Forces and society at large despite years of work to confront it. 'The Canadian Forces has always had a problem with racism, sexism and other toxic ideologies,' said Walter Callaghan, adding it's part of what ultimately drove him away from the military in 2010 after nearly a decade serving as a medic. 'It's just the nature of an institution that is this old, that is so enmeshed in the foundation of Canada.' The data comes from the Hateful Conduct Incident Tracking System (HCITS), established to track incidents reported to the chain of command involving military members. Story continues below advertisement Last year, 54 incidents were reported to the HCITS, almost double the 31 incidents reported in 2023. The number of hateful conduct incidents reported so far this year — 34 — has already surpassed that 2023 number, according to the data. There have been 364 incidents of hateful conduct reported to the HCITS since 2020, DND says. Broken down annually, the number of reports had been steadily falling from 116 in 2020 alone before last year's spike. That increase was driven largely by a rise in reported instances of engaging in hate speech or propaganda — 26 incidents in 2024 versus 10 in 2023 — and intimidation or uttering threats (17 last year versus 11 in 2023). There have already been 20 reports of hate speech or propaganda this year, double the 2023 number, the data shows. Story continues below advertisement 'It doesn't completely surprise me,' Callaghan said after looking at the data. 'It's been a long time coming.' A DND spokesperson noted the data only reflects when reports are received, not necessarily when the incident occurred, and that one incident can feature across multiple categories when deemed appropriate by the chain of command. 'Hateful conduct, including extremism, is completely incompatible with the values and ethical principles of the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces,' a DND spokesperson told Global News. Recent extremist cases involving military members The data comes shortly after a pair of high-profile cases of alleged extremism involving members of the Canadian military. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Last month, two active military officers were among those arrested for allegedly plotting to forcibly seize a plot of land in Quebec in what authorities called a violent 'anti-government' operation. The military members were denied bail last week. Story continues below advertisement 0:32 3 Quebec terror suspects denied bail in alleged land seizure plot Military police have reopened an investigation into a now-defunct Facebook group involving Canadian Army members that Lt.-Gen. Michael Wright, the Army's commanding officer, said contained 'racist, misogynistic, homophobic and antisemitic comments and images' in an internal email that called the group 'abhorrent.' The commanding officer of the Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa has been removed from his post in connection with the probe into the 'Blue Hackle Mafia' social media group, Wright confirmed last month. Asked about those two investigations Friday during an announcement on boosting pay for military members, Prime Minister Mark Carney called them 'terrible situations' and underscored the continued need for 'systematic' culture change in the military. 'First is to call it what it is,' he told reporters. 'Second is to be systematic about understanding what's going on across a huge complex organization — that's as true for the government of Canada as it is for the (Canadian Armed) Forces as it is for a private sector organization — and then taking action on the specific cases but also doing those systematic reforms.' Story continues below advertisement Carney said the government and military have implemented over 60 per cent of the recommendations in former Supreme Court justice Louise Arbour's 2022 report on sexual misconduct and culture within the Canadian Armed Forces, which called the military a 'broken system.' Work is ongoing to address the outstanding recommendations, the prime minister added. That 2022 report followed exclusive reporting by Global News over the course of 18 months into allegations of sexual misconduct in the highest ranks of the Canadian Forces. 2:42 Ottawa releases 'ambitious' roadmap to reform military culture Before that report was issued, Callaghan wrote a 2020 paper as a PhD candidate in medical anthropology at the University of Toronto that expressed skepticism that the military would be able to truly change its culture and root out sexual misconduct and 'toxic masculinity.' Story continues below advertisement That culture — particularly the strong military bonds that can discourage speaking out or reporting troubling incidents — applies to hateful conduct and racism, he says. 'That trust is at such a level, that the idea of calling someone out or ratting someone out to the authorities — even when we see the worst behaviours happening — it becomes almost impossible to do that,' he said. As members rise through the ranks, Callaghan said, 'You end up with someone in a leadership position that either holds some of these views or turns a blind eye to them that allows it to grow.' Government data suggests an eroding hesitancy to report troubling incidents. According to the HCITS, the number of days between an incident and a report to the chain of command fell from 169 days in 2019 to just three in 2023. Extremism rising in Canada David Hoffmann, a sociology professor at the University of New Brunswick who co-led research into far-right extremism with the military, says the spike in HCITS reports reflects a growing normalization of hateful behaviour that extends beyond the current political climate. Story continues below advertisement 'Society has loosened the bonds and loosened the social consequences for this type of behaviour,' he told Global News. 'Which is problematic.' That trend has been observed around the world and goes back decades, he added. 'This isn't just one individual pushing this narrative, like (U.S. President Donald Trump) or anything like that. This is something that's happening globally.' 3:36 Canadian far-right extremists trying to accelerate confrontation with federal government, expert warns Canadian law enforcement and outside analyses suggest extremism has been rising in Canada in recent years, however, fueled in part by the COVID-19 pandemic and growing anti-government sentiment. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service told Global News in January that the agency and the government's Integrated Terrorism Assessment Centre 'are seeing a concerning increase in the volume of ideological, political and religious extremist rhetoric and activities.' Story continues below advertisement But it said the government had 'effectively managed the threats,' and those planning violence have been 'successfully disrupted.' A report in April from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue warned Canadian extremists were capitalizing on the deteriorating relationship between Canada and the U.S. under the Trump administration to draw people towards their movements. Canada's Integrated Threat Assessment Centre, in a report obtained by Global News last month, said female 'extremist influencers' are using popular online platforms to radicalize and recruit women. Hoffmann said more education on how to recognize and confront harmful behaviour is critical for both the military and society at large to combat extremism. 'It's not something you can catch ahead of time,' he said. 'It's something you need to cut out when you find it.' The Canadian Armed Forces told Global News that culture change is 'an evolutionary process' that remains ongoing. 'It will require incremental, iterative, and deliberate changes to systems, structures, policies and practices that have been in place for a long time,' a spokesperson said in a statement. 'More importantly, it will take time. And while we have made great progress, we know that there is still more work to do.' Story continues below advertisement —With files from Global's Amandalina Letterio, Alex Boutilier and Stewart Bell
CBC
08-08-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Military's hateful conduct reports spiked in 2024 after years of steady decline
The Canadian military has witnessed a resurgence in hateful conduct and racism reports over the last year following several years of decline, according to data obtained by CBC News. The detailed information comes as the army deals with a fresh set of extremism and disreputable conduct allegations. The sudden turnaround has piqued the curiosity of far-right extremism experts, who say it's no coincidence the numbers began to reverse in 2024 just as tumultuous political and social change was unleashed in the United States with the re-election of Donald Trump as president — and as the Canadian military is years deep into a mission to change its culture. The commander of the Canadian Army looks upon the evidence with dismay. "I think the soldiers of the Canadian Army should be as livid as I am about the impact that this is having on their reputation," Lt.-Gen. Mike Wright said in a recent interview. The new data shows 54 incidents were reported last year to the Hateful Conduct Incident Tracking System (HCITS) — nearly double what was logged in 2023. The tracking system was created several years ago following a series of extremism-related cases and public embarrassments. Since 2020, there have been 364 reported occurrences of hateful conduct entered into the HCITS register. After an initial spike in reporting, the numbers had been on a gradual downward trend until last year's turnaround. The HCITS recorded increases across most categories of what the military defines as hateful conduct, including engaging in hate speech and propaganda (26 in 2024 versus 10 in 2023) and uttering threats (17 in 2024 versus 11 in 2023). Experts looking at the data say the social and political events south the border may be one explanation for the troubling resurgence. "There's a link between that rise and the election of Donald Trump," said Andy Knight, a political scientist at the University of Alberta who researches far-right extremism. He said Trump's ascendance has brought "a significant feeling of empowerment" to those pushing antidemocratic rhetoric "particularly against Black and brown individuals." Knight penned an exhaustive study for the Department of National Defence (DND) into white supremacy, racism, xenophobia and discrimination in the Canadian military. The report, written prior to the last U.S. presidential election, was submitted in December 2024. It was followed up with an in-person briefing for members of the Defence Department about two months ago in Ottawa. Knight says he shared with the department an "explosive" anti-immigrant comment from a former Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) member who said he was trying to preserve the "true Canadian population," which for him was white. "He said, 'I joined the military to learn how to kill brown and Black people,'" Knight said. He said DND members shook their heads at this revelation. "They said: 'You know what? We know that there are people like this in the military. But we didn't realize that they would be so open." Tumultuous decade for CAF Aside from the external social and political climate, there are likely internal pressures contributing to the turnaround. The Canadian military has — for more than a decade — been trying to root out not only hateful activity, but sexual misconduct with a series of new, stringent policies. "There is pushback against that culture change," said Barbara Perry, a researcher who has studied extremism in the CAF. The military is trying to rein in certain behaviour, she said, and those efforts are being seen as "intrusive, or treading on their rights and freedoms. So, that draws people into extremist narratives." WATCH | The military's history of extremism: Canada's military has a long-simmering problem with extremism 14 days ago The recent increase in hateful conduct incidents also comes despite a crackdown through a series of policy initiatives and threats of discipline initiated by the former army commander, now-retired general Wayne Eyre, almost five years ago. Among the provisions introduced at the time was an expectation that soldiers would call out racist and disgraceful behaviour among themselves if they witnessed it. That hasn't been happening. In light of the most recent cases, Wright says he's dismayed and angry. "That's the most disturbing to me," Wright said. "I'm asking soldiers to be prepared to ultimately go into combat, to have the courage to go into the combat. There are some who did not have the moral courage to step forward and call out inappropriate behavior when they saw it." In early July, a terrorism case emerged in Quebec, where two serving soldiers, a former member and a civilian, former cadet instructor, were accused of cooking up an extremist, anti-government plot to take over a parcel of land. They allegedly stockpiled an arsenal of highly restricted weapons and military equipment, including cutting-edge night-vision gear. The RCMP charged Simon Angers-Audet, 24, Raphaël Lagacé, 25, and Marc-Aurèle Chabot, 24, with facilitating a terrorist activity, and other offences related to the illegal storage of firearms and possession of explosives and prohibited devices. A fourth man — Matthew Forbes, 33 — is accused of weapons offences. DND acknowledges that Forbes and Chabot were active members of the military at the time of their arrest on July 8. Separately, two investigations are underway, including a military police probe, over a now-defunct Facebook group where members of the Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa (Duke of Edinburgh's Own) allegedly posted hateful and inappropriate content. Since 2020, according to the data obtained by CBC News, the military has acknowledged that 21 incidents of hateful conduct have led to the release of members under the disciplinary system. WATCH | Military members part of alleged extremist plot: RCMP charges military members in Quebec with trying to create anti-government militia 1 month ago There have been calls for the military to be more proactive in notifying civilian police whenever they've uncovered hateful conduct cases — efforts that have so far gone nowhere. It is up to the military's counter-intelligence unit to identify extremists within the ranks. The Department of National Defence was asked whether the unit played any role in the recent Quebec case. In a written statement, the department would only acknowledge that "military police supported the Royal Canadian Mounted Police-led investigation." The question of whether counter-intelligence had conducted its own investigation — or even been aware of the suspect's militia-style training — remained unanswered.
