(11 Sep 1997) English/Nat The United States army Thursday released two reports that reveal sexual harassment exists throughout the Army, crossing gender, rank and racial lines. Army Secretary Togo West said the findings blamed army leaders who ignored problems and allowed such behaviour to become commonplace. In a searing indictment of itself, the U-S Army has released its largest-ever study of sexual harassment. The 10-month review was sparked by the last November's allegations of widespread sexual misconduct at the U-S Army Ordnance Centre in Aberdeen, Maryland. It was made public by Army Secretary Togo West and General Dennis Reimer, the Army chief of staff. SOUNDBITE: (English) "What happened to our army? And why did it happen? We released today the two reports that have gone a long way towards answering the question of what, and we think the reports tell us that. The what is that sexual harassment exists in the army, across the ranks, across the genders, across the units." SUPER CAPTION: Togo West, U-S Army Secretary The Army charged 12 staff members at the Aberdeen base with sex crimes ranging from inappropriate sexual comments to rape. Of those cases, one was convicted of rape, four were convicted of other sexual misconduct, four agreed to be discharged in lieu of court-martial, one was cleared of sexual misconduct charges and two cases haven't been resolved. While one two-star general and a number of mid-level officers have been reprimanded for the problems at Aberdeen, top Army leaders were not expected to identify the disciplined officers by name. But sources say Major General Robert Shadley, the former commander of the Aberdeen training base, has been sent potentially career-ending letter of reprimand. He reportedly plans to contest it. West sought to draw a distinction between sexual harassment and the sexual abuses - rapes and assaults - that were found at Aberdeen. SOUNDBITE: (English) "The panel members have been briefed and have expressed the view that what happened at Aberdeen was an aberration - that sexual abuse, sexual abuse is not endemic throughout our army. Sexual harassment, however, continues to be a problem." SUPER CAPTION: Togo West, U-S Army Secretary The two-volume study was accompanied by an Army inspector general's report on the Army's training programme, and a separate "action plan" aimed at fixing many of the problems turned up by a senior review panel. It calls among other things to require a week of training for recruits on ethics and moral values. The Army has also pledged to put a new focus on training, revamping screening of potential drill sergeants, and add more chaplains to the ranks as well as add the additional week of training. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives ​​ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/698e470639428af33032babfba1c5079

• published: 21 Jul 2015
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