The Ombudsman for the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces released their report: “Standing Together: Ensuring Fair Treatment for Canadian Language and Cultural Advisors who Served in Afghanistan.” DefenceReport published an article about this subject a couple of months ago as a report was imminent. Now the report is out and the severity of the issue has not diminished.

The Language and Cultural Advisors (LCAs) were a small group of Canadian citizens who performed contract work to support operations in Afghanistan. LCAs were comprised of 81 Canadian citizens who were of Afghan or regional descent. They were required to sign a standard civilian contractor form by the Chief Defence Intelligence J2X Directorate (CDI J2X). The work description described work on a military base and mentioned that they may be required to travel to Forward Operating Bases, but nothing about frontline work on combat patrols outside Kandahar Airbase.

Of the LCAs that reached out to the Ombudsman, the shortest deployment of 57 days and the longest was over two years seven months or more than 930 days.  Two LCAs served in Afghanistan for four years in total and four others for three years.

PTSD symptoms do tend not to manifest immediately. Due to the nature of contract work with DND, LCAs were not eligible for comprehensive health and mental benefits after their contract was over and this was when PTSD set in. Now although, the report did not explicitly state that the following were due to PTSD injuries. But the recognizable effects of dealing with “addictions, homelessness, marital breakdowns and family estrangements” would suggest that. Some LCAs reported that had difficulty obtaining or retaining employment. However, some LCAs had to deplete their savings or sell their homes to continue supporting their families.

DND moved their cases to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board of Ontario (WSIB). However due to the nature of the work abroad and not being able to share what they did exactly overseas due to Do Not Disclose Clauses, the offerings of the WSIB were an inadequate measure. The Ombudsman office has taken up the mantle once again and the work exemplifies what they aim to achieve.

For the LCAs, we asked them to serve as Canadian citizens, but then left them to their own demons. It is not the first time that the Ombudsman offered a policy for the government to undertake over the LCAs. This Ombudsman report did provide a roadmap for the government to follow.

Ombudsman Recommendations to the Minister of National Defence:

  1. It is recommended that, under authority of the Minister of National Defence, the Department of National Defence immediately offer independent assessments to this group of LCAs who served as term employees of the DND between 2006-2014 and who claim to have been adversely or permanently affected by their employment.

These assessments should:

  • Determine the physical and psychological care required for the affected individuals;
  • Determine the long-term needs of the affected individuals; and
  • Serve as the basis. To develop and fund a reasonable care plan.
  1. The affected individuals should be awarded immediate and reasonable financial compensation in line with jurisprudence in similar situations.

Even though parliament has been prorogued until March, the Minister of National Defence can enact policies and get the bureaucratic ball rolling. This is not a new issue as it has been one that the Ombudsman Office, and the CBC’s Murray Brewster, fought valiantly for. The only reason why this is still popping up as an issue is because of Brewster’s reporting and the bold work of the DND/CAF Ombudsman Office.

It is a quick policy win for the Minister of National Defence. It does not require a parliamentary vote. It is a defence policy, that for once, is not controversial. Just do it and honour these individuals and what they offered, and sacrificed, for our operation in Afghanistan and for what we all hoped would be a better and just Afghanistan.

 

Feature Photo: “Afghanistan Canadian LAV Patrol”, Wikimedia Commons, 2024

By Stewart Webb

The editor of DefenceReport and Senior Analyst, Stewart Webb holds a MScEcon in Security Studies from Aberystwyth University and a BA in Political Science from Acadia University. A frequent guest on defence issues for CTV National News, and other Canadian media outlets, his specialities include commentary on terrorist/insurgent activity and Canadian defence issues. Stewart can be contacted at: [email protected]