Federal Sport Minister Pascale St-Onge is calling on her provincial and territorial counterparts to establish independent bodies to handle harassment complaints from athletes by the end of this year.
B次元官网网址淎ll governments will work together, to have every athlete and participant in Canada protected by an independent mechanism, targeting to achieve this by the end of 2023,B次元官网网址� St-Onge told reporters Saturday.
In recent weeks, Ottawa has said that provinces and territories are making progress in offering athletes an equivalent standard for them to report abuse or harassment, as well as having those complaints independently investigated.
St-Onge said that as of Saturday, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia have such mechanisms in place, while the rest can either start their own bodies or join the jurisdiction of the federal Sport Integrity Commissioner.
She announced Saturday a target for all provinces and territories to follow through on that pledge by the end of this year.
St-Onge argued that having a targeted timeline amounts to B次元官网网址渢remendous progressB次元官网网址� in having a uniform approach to the issue, and stressed it takes time to get a credible reporting body up and running.
B次元官网网址淲e understand that all jurisdictions have their own processes, their own budget agenda, their own calendar that we need to respect. But that doesnB次元官网网址檛 mean that we donB次元官网网址檛 take the safety of athletes, children, teenagers, young adults across the country seriously,B次元官网网址� she said.
St-Onge was speaking after meeting with her provincial and territorial counterparts on the sidelines of the Canada Games in Charlottetown, where she said they compared different options for these mechanisms.
Prince Edward Island Health Minister Ernie Hudson, who hosted the meeting, told reporters the goal is B次元官网网址渆liminating wrongdoers from sportB次元官网网址� across Canada.
B次元官网网址淭his is not B次元官网网址� for us or anybody else B次元官网网址� a rush to get it done. ItB次元官网网址檚 a rush to get it done right,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淚t is only through a pan-Canadian approach that we can help sport truly be a force for good in our nation, for athletes at every level, at every ability, at every age group,B次元官网网址� he said.
Recent allegations of abuse and harassment involving Hockey Canada B次元官网网址� as well as from athletes in bobsled, skeleton and gymnastics B次元官网网址� have led to what St-Onge has called a crisis.
She told a parliamentary committee this month that part of the problem stems from lack of coherence in how complaints are handled across the country.
B次元官网网址淲hat is important is that we have consistency in the system. At the moment, what we see is that itB次元官网网址檚 very disparate,B次元官网网址� she told the House status of women committee last week, in French.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 not passing the buck to anyone, but the reality is the sports system touches multiple jurisdictions and I canB次元官网网址檛 fix it alone,B次元官网网址� she added, in English.
Last month, dozens of Canadian and global sport scholars signed a letter calling for a national inquiry to examine B次元官网网址渨idespread reports of sexual, physical, and psychological abuse of athletes throughout the countryB次元官网网址檚 sport system.B次元官网网址�
Those academics argued OttawaB次元官网网址檚 current plans donB次元官网网址檛 do enough to hold people accountable.
St-Onge said Saturday that resolving the issue requires sports organizations to ensure people face consequences. Coaches and parents must also be informed and show leadership, she added.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 really a collective responsibility,B次元官网网址� she said in French.
B次元官网网址淭here is no single person who will be able to change the culture in a sport, or who will completely succeed in stopping abuse and mistreatment. ItB次元官网网址檚 really a responsibility that is shared.B次元官网网址�
Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press
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