O'Dea tells of moves against bullying in Army

A quarter of all military personnel had experienced bullying and harassment, including almost 70 per cent of females, the Fine Gael defence spokesman, Mr Dinny McGinley, claimed in the Dáil.

He said the original report on the matter had itemised a litany of serious infringements of human rights. These, he said, included "some very serious incidents of rape and attempted rape which went unreported; as well as demands for sexual favours, offensive telephone calls, e-mails and text messages; breaking into women's bedrooms, walking into women's shower areas and the display of pornographic material".

Mr McGinley asked the Minister for Defence, Mr O'Dea, who was taking his first Question Time in that role, if he agreed that this kind of behaviour would undermine the team spirit which was necessary for discipline within the Defence Forces.

He also asked if the proposed ombudsman for the Defence Forces would be given a meaningful role in counteracting such activity.

Agreeing that the problem was ongoing, Mr O'Dea said that a number of improvements had been made. He said that since Dr Eileen Doyle and the external advisory committee group had presented their report, The Challenge of a Workplace, in March 2002, the implementation of its recommendations had been a priority.

The ombudsman would have a very meaningful role, he added. "He or she will replace the Minister for Defence, or the CIO as is the case at present, as the final court of appeal." Mr O'Dea said individual members of PDFORRA, whom he had met last week, had brought to his attention the fear experienced by some members of enlisted personnel about making a complaint.

"They are worried about whether such a complaint would be held against them and used to punish them at some time in the future. I am anxious to get around that issue. The 200 designated contact persons will have a vital role to play in that regard. In addition, any attempt to punish or penalise any enlisted person who makes a complaint will be an offence which will be subject to military discipline."

The Labour spokesman on defence, Mr Joe Sherlock, asked if the Minister agreed that bullying was endemic within the Defence Forces. An analysis had indicated that females in the lower ranks were the victims of bullying while in training.

Mr O'Dea said that bullying appeared to be endemic in the military when the Doyle report was commissioned in 2002. However, there was evidence that the situation had improved substantially since then. He believed, he added, that the ombudsman, the new training schemes, a new integrated personnel management system and the designated contact persons would have a vital role to play.

"I agree with Deputy Sherlock that the original statistics indicated females were more likely than males to be bullied," he said.