In an effort to curb sexual violence in the U.S. military, training and awareness programs have been employed, with a few personnel members being appointed to leadership positions in the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response units of their respective branches.
The Pentagon revealed Tuesday that these efforts have largely failed.
Sexual assault went up 35 percent from 2010, and recently the leader of the Air Force's sexual assault prevention program, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Krusinski was accused of groping the breasts and buttocks of a woman he did not know while drunk in a parking lot.
The Pentagon used anonymous surveys throughout the military to compile sexual assault data and found that 26,000 service members were victim to "unwanted sexual contact," up from 19,300, USA Today reported.
President Barack Obama responded harshly to the report, indicating he had no tolerance for such behavior. He encouraged stronger actions be taken to suppress these crimes.
"I expect consequences," he said at a conference today. "So I don't just want more speeches or awareness programs or training, but ultimately folks look the other way. If we find out somebody's engaging in this, they've got to be held accountable -- prosecuted, stripped of their positions, court martialed, fired, dishonorably discharged. Period."
The report, which is part of an ongoing study by the Defense Department, also found that these crimes are severely underreported, with only 1 in 10 victims coming forward.
There were 3,374 cases reported last year, with only 3,000 choosing to press charges. The rate of sexual assault is now up from 1 in 23 to 1 in 16, the report found.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel called the issue one of the most serious challenges for the military and said that Obama has ordered he and the military to step up its game.
Hagel also released a series of initiatives to help the military in tackling the sexual assault epidemic, including the following:
- Holding commanders accountable for creating a climate in which sexual assault is prevented and victims are properly taken care of.
- Reducing the stigma for victims of reporting sexual assault.
- Enhancing sexual abuse prevention training and education programs for trainers and recruits.
The Air Force has particularly come under fire as Krusinski has demonstrated a failure in handling the problem authorities said. Krusinski was immediately removed from his position, an Air Force spokeswoman told the Washington Post. The victim accused him of groping her in a parking lot and managed to fend him off before he allegedly attempted to attack her again. She then called 911.
The Air Force conceded that it is working on "a cancer" of sexual assault within its ranks.
Obama urged all military personnel to speak out against the problem and voiced his support for the victims.
"For those who are in uniform who've experience sexual assault, I want them to hear directly from their commander in chief that I've got their backs," Obama said. "I will support them. And we're not going to tolerate this stuff, and there will be accountability."
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