Female soldiers raped by colleagues were ‘misdiagnosed’ with personality disorder

[IwantToRetire]

Hundreds of female members of the Armed Forces who accused their colleagues of rape were “misdiagnosed” with having a personality disorder

The victims claimed that after they sought help for sexual assault from the military’s departments of community mental health (DCMH), they were “written off” with emotionally unstable personality disorder and subsequently medically discharged.

Sorry article is in the Telegraph and behind a paywall www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/01/14/female-soldiers-raped-colleagues-misdiagnosed-personality-disorder/

The Daily Mail does have a version of the story here www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11637329/Hundreds-female-members-Armed-Forces-raped-misdiagnosed-personality-disorder.html

I think most of us are aware that whether as part of the armed forces or the police women are at high risk of rape and sexual assault. And more likely than not will either be ignored or have their claims dismissed.

It just seems year after year this is reported and nothing changes.

Disgusting but not unsurprising sadly.

This story is horrific, and sounds like there's a lot more to it. How can it be that all these women just so happened to be misdiagnosed with a condition that means you're exited from the army and therefore not their problem any longer?

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A friend was in the army, she joined after school and did officer training, and then her degree whilst still enlisted. I let her at university and one night she mentioned she was raped by a slightly senior officer. I’ll never forget the chill when she calmly explained that she hadn’t bothered reporting it as its « just one of those things » when you’re in the army. An engineering student (female) who was also in the army just nodded in agreement.

I met her at university…

That’s so awful. 😭

They should have kept the services single sex. So many lives ruined and for what?

My Gran was in the Wrens (female only navy) and she loved it. Such a shame a few campaigners got it changed so the services are mixed sex. It doesn’t work.

Horrific, but not surprising.

I think what is so depressing is that women wanting equality are made to think they have to fit in the existing male behaviour.

And that includes not making a fuss about rape and sexual abuse.

But then it isn't just the armed forces, as we have been made aware women going into modeling or films are also attacked by men, and expected not to make a fuss.

What sort of job or choice of work would say one aspect of doing it is sexual violence.

Even those promoting "sex work" dont ever acknowledge the rape of prostitution.

So much for equality.

What happens to the perpetrators? I suspect very little. These sexual predators are sent out into the world, representing our country sometimes amongst poor and vulnerable populations. Then there are their careers after the armed forces. Which, I believe, can often be in security such as the Police force. And the whole 'old boys' network, the shared values and culture that has been inculcated into them. That these values seem to include a lot of misogyny seems hardly surprising.

I think that we really need to remember that despite women being "liberated" they are not in fact free of men using their positions of priviledge to abuse them.

When the papers occassionally lift the lid on this, it is usally only to focus on an existing target like the Met, rather than thinking how often does this happen to women elsewhere.

And I have no doubt that the men who do get away with it are celebrated. I cant remember the number of times you read the obituary of some man who when alive everyone said how brilliant, clever, sucessful they were, and then stories start coming out about their behaviour towards women.

I always used to think my mum was so old fashioned and a bit silly for going on at me about being careful of my surroundings and who I was with. Now I know that not only was she right then (more than a few decades ago) but now. And in fact now maybe worse because through social media and trash tv young women are made to feel that they should be available to men.

Yes, this is it.

It ought to be shocking, but it's just numbing to see yet another thing. And once again, everyone* knew but nobody said or did anything.

• Although no doubt most in any position to have acted will deny all knowledge.

All of this. Just horrifying.

I am generally full of hate of the Russian state and military these days.

It is a shock when you realise that in your own country, which you’ve always thought was ‘not like that’, there are so many soldiers who are not officers and gentlemen after all but rapists.. This silencing of women with false charges of madness is worthy of Russia too.