Military Probes Enforcement Of Rules On Gays

The Pentagon opened a formal review this week into allegations by gay rights advocates that military investigators are wrongfully conducting aggressive inquiries into the sex lives of gay service members and that commanders have turned a blind eye to harassment.

The review, launched without fanfare Monday, is not aimed at amending a 3-year-old policy regulating homosexuals in the ranks, but at ensuring correct enforcement of rules that were painstakingly negotiated with military leaders and Congress during President Clinton’s first months in office, defense officials said.

Gay activists welcomed the move as a first step, saying it reflects what they regard as a greater commitment to proper implementation of the rules since former Republican senator William S. Cohen replaced William J. Perry as defense secretary in January.

Under the policy, dubbed “don’t ask, don’t tell,” the military agreed to stop searching out gays, provided they keep their sexual orientation private. Being homosexual is no longer a bar to military service, but admitting it or engaging in homosexual activity can trigger expulsion. The policy was a compromise between Clinton’s 1992 campaign pledge to eliminate the mandatory discharge of gays and resistance by the military and Congress to letting homosexuals serve freely.

Since the regulations took effect in early 1994, the number of gays dismissed from military service has climbed 42 percent, reaching 850 last year, a five-year high, according to Defense Department statistics.

When the policy on gays was revised three years ago, defense officials predicted an end to the questioning of service members about their sexual orientation and the harassment of homosexuals. But gay activists contend that gays continue to face inappropriate interrogations, abuse by other service members and improper, heavy-handed investigations.