By Canadian Press

General who wrote reference for sex offender reassigned after outrage over new post

Oct 6, 2021 | 6:04 AM

OTTAWA — The Canadian Armed Forces has removed a senior officer who wrote a reference for a convicted sex offender from his job reviewing ways to eliminate military sexual misconduct.

Vice chief of the defence staff Lt.-Gen. Frances Allen says Maj.-Gen. Peter Dawe was being reassigned following outrage over his new posting.

Allen says the decision stems from discussions with survivors of military sexual misconduct, and that Dawe’s immediate task will be to engage with that community to better understand their perspectives and issues.

Dawe was first relieved of his duties as commander of Canada’s special forces in April following a CBC report that he had written a character reference four years earlier for a soldier convicted of sexually assaulting a comrade’s wife.

Dawe quickly apologized, and was quietly reassigned to a new job collecting and reviewing recommendations from three retired Supreme Court justices to address sexual misconduct in the Armed Forces and bringing about culture change.

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On Tuesday Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan stood by the military’s decision to put Dawe into the new position, even as some questioned the appropriateness of the new post and the message it sends to victims.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 6, 2021.

The Canadian Press