Canadian Armed Forces Are Plagued By Scandals Officer Recalled From Haiti; Soldiers In Bosnia Accused

Canada’s scandal-plagued military has recalled a peacekeeping commander from Haiti for misconduct, and a top general reportedly plans to seek courts-martial of peacekeepers accused of abuses in Bosnia.

The developments - the latest in a series of blows severely tarnishing the image of Canada’s armed forces - have prompted the defense minister to freeze all officers’ promotions while he investigates leadership problems.

The recall of the third-ranking Canadian officer in Haiti, Lt. Col. Roch Lacroix, was announced late Wednesday in a terse statement that gave few details.

Military officials declined to comment Thursday. But a diplomatic source in Haiti, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Lacroix, on his way back from a New Year’s Eve party, drew his pistol on a truck driver who was blocking his way.

Canada’s top army commander, Lt. Gen. Maurice Baril, is expected to elaborate on the Lacroix case today while releasing a series of reports on recent problems in the military, the Montreal newspaper Le Devoir reported.

Among those reports, Le Devoir said, would be one criticizing officers in charge of a 1993-94 mission in Bosnia during which Canadian peacekeepers allegedly abused patients and had sex with nurses at a mental hospital.

Le Devoir said Baril will recommend the courts-martial of several officers and soldiers who served in Bosnia.

Baril also is expected to release two reports on Sandra Perron, a former army captain who was beaten and tied to a tree in 1992 during a training mission. Perron, the first woman to become an infantry officer in the Canadian army, quit the military in 1995.

Le Devoir said one of the reports criticizes military authorities for failing to insist strongly enough on respect for the rules on integrating women into the armed services.

The peacekeeping missions in Bosnia and Haiti had been sources of pride for Canadian soldiers at a time when the military was under siege for abuses committed by some of its soldiers during a mission to Somalia in 1992-93.

An investigation into those abuses - which included the torture-slaying of a Somalian teenager - has been under way since 1995, and investigators are seeking information about a possible cover-up attempt involving senior defense officials.

But Defense Minister Doug Young, over bitter objections from the investigators, said last week that inquiry hearings must end by March 31 - which investigators said is too soon to complete a probe into the alleged cover-up.

Lacroix was a battalion commander with the 750-member Canadian peacekeeping contingent in Haiti. The Defense Department, announcing his recall, said his performance “did not reflect the leadership standards expected of an officer of his experience and responsibilities.”

The department left open the possibility that Lacroix would face disciplinary action.