Report of attempted rapes of US servicewomen at US base in Afghanistan

[wordpix]

A friend of the family has a daughter/female soldier who just arrived in Afghanistan, address MALS 16, Bastion base. She reports US servicemen attempting rapes of US servicewomen. Women are scared and intimidated; 3 women escaped an attempted rape.

I am reporting in hopes this will be stopped immediately. I called DOD and WH but got a phone answering machine and a woman who told me to call back tomorrow, respectively. I guess no one in US gov. realizes a war is going on after 5 pm EST and women aren't safe on a base or off in Afghanistan. This is an emergency.

Again, the US is really scraping the bottom of the barrel when they sign up soldiers who are criminals and rapists.

[Oregone]

1. Our best and brightest do not do those types of things

Only our few bad apples do, and we caught most of them at Abu Grahib

[seabeyond]

3. for real? 1 in 3 women raped in military. 80-90% claim harrassment.

63% of males in a college study said they would rape if they could get away with it.

lookie

they get away with it in the military and have for the last 6 years

[LiberalLoner]

5. Waiting for the haters to come "oh you are such a liar, men are wonderful and it's

only ebul women LYING that make it seem like mens are bad...." "Men are being falsely accused, those womens are just sluts everyone knows Armyw omen are big sluts, they have sex and then change their midns" "Won't someone think of hte MEN? Someone MUST protect the MENS from those ebul women claiming rape! OMG!!!"

[Oregone]

6. "63% of males in a college study"

But these are our best and brightest, not college students. Our best and brightest do not lush away their youth, smoking pot and getting laid in college. The be all they can be (tm).

"War alone brings up to its highest tension all human energy and puts the stamp of nobility upon the peoples who have courage to meet it. All other trials are substitutes, which never really put men into the position where they have to make the great decision -- the alternative of life or death."

[LiberalLoner]

7. LOL the sarcasm is great :) n/t

[seabeyond]

9. no really, you are teasing arent you. lol. nt

[uppityperson]

22. You had me wondering until this post.

seemed odd for you. :rofl:

[LiberalLoner]

2. Nearly 1/3 of servicewomen are raped, a recent study shows.

I will have to go find the report because I know everyone will accuse me of exagerrating until I give proof. Anyway I am one of those soldiers who got raped when on an overseas assignment by a male LT who shared the same trailer with a bunch of us. I didn't cry out because I knew if word got out that I'd been raped or there was an attempted rape, I would be repatriated for psychiatric care automatically and that would have been the end of my career. so I stayed quiet and it was over with in a couple of minutes. Easier than giving up my career anyhow.

Anyway, yes, that sort of thing is very common especially overseas. It's well known in the military too and they are trying I think to find a way to stop it.

Edited to add link to one story: http://www.alternet.org/rights/19134/

[LiberalLoner]

4. BTW it wasn't about sex - the male LT had a girlfriend already, and he

raped me only to teach me a lesson about how females did not belong in HIS Army. Whatever.

What really sucked is that he had s everal more months left on his tour and I had to live with the jerk in the same trailer, same latrine showers, etc.

If I were in charge of the MFO I would change it so that males and females did not share the same trailer and the same latrine..but then I'm not in charge, nor will I ever be. Shrug.

For most of us soldiers, it's just the price we pay for wearing the uniform. And most of us never tell anyone.

[Texasgal]

8. How horrible..

You did turn him in...yes?

I am so sorry that happened to you, rape is a horrible crime.

[seabeyond]

12. as she said, she endured. she would have been the one punished, not him.

their reality

[seabeyond]

10. yes, it is known. better to be honest than pretend otherwise

and i am sorry for what you went thru.

[LiberalLoner]

14. Thank you. I am blessed by God because I have a good husband now, who

protects me and keeps me safe and loves me. I feel lucky to be safe and loved now. I did not report what happened to me but when one of my soldiers got molested b y a dentist, I fought it, all the way up to the Department of the Army IG and DACOWITZ and when that failed I went to the press (only after resigning my commission - I knew my career would be over at that point so I did what I had to do.)

I fought hard for my soldiers but...I just..I never fought for myself. Never thought that way. I was raised not to fight, to just accept what was done to me. Even now I am not good at defending myself.

[seabeyond]

17. ahhhhhh

i am so sorry to here that. not able to fight for self. gotta start with you.

good to hear that you have been able to put it in its place. maybe a little healing fighting for someone else.... thru your experience.

[Odin2005]

31. Christ, I'm sorry you had to experience that!

:( :hug:

[Forkboy]

11. So what's new?

[kittykitty]

13. wonder what will happen when women are submarine crew members?

[LiberalLoner]

15. I'm actually really worried about that situation, I'll be honest. n/t

[LiberalLoner]

16. I should say, though, that I have served with some really honorable, good men, too...don't

want to make it seem like the Army is full of bad men when it's not that way at all. But there are some bad men, or men who do bad things, and the system is set up against the female victim so we usually don't report, and if we do, it's a career-ender in every single case. It's sad. I hope the Army makes changes for the better, soon.

[AwakeAtLast]

18. My husband's unit knew this

They all made the conscious decision that the women in their unit were not to go to anywhere without a male with them. This was in '05

The women are all prescribed birth control pills and ordered to take them while over there, too. They've known this has been going on for a long time.

[HowHasItComeToThis]

19. DON'T FORGET, ALL VOLUNTEER

[seabeyond]

20. so? rape is ok, rape doesnt matter, rape doesnt count? she volunteered for rape? nt

[uppityperson]

23. What does that have to do with anything and wtf? No, not "all volunteer"

stop loss.

prison or military (steven green for one, rip Abeera, Hadeel, Fakhriya and Qassim. so sorry Mohammed and Ahmed)

Neither of these are particularly "all volunteer" and wtf would that have to do with rapes or not anyway?

[seabeyond]

24. "Courage is needed to stand up and take on these bullies" nobody should be raped

because we have a "volunteer" army

[waiting for hope]

27. Good God -

Are you suggesting that the women who chose to serve their country deserve whatever they get because they volunteered? That is low and despicable ... and that attitude is why we have not budged an inch on being a more enlightened species. Thanks for keeping us barefoot and pregnant, I'll remember that the next time I show my son an example of backward and moronic thinking.

[seabeyond]

28. he doesnt keep us barefoot and preg, but i wouldnt be surprised if he isnt part of the #'s.

one has to be able to validate their own behavior after all

[Odin2005]

30. QUIT BLAMING THE VICTIM! ASSHOLE!

[annm4peace]

21. Contact SWAN: Service Women Action Network

call this # and tell them it is urgent:
Please e-mail us at: [e-mail]
Call: 212-683-0015 Ext. 324

The rapes are partly why SWAN came together.


I am a supporter of Vets for Peace and Iraq Veterans Against the War.

Vets for Peace
Also call Iraq Veterans Against the War.
http://www.ivaw.org/contact


They are all good groups and have chapters all over the country. Many chapters have women Vets (and active duty) who could also be of help.

Just give the chapter a call and ask to speak to a Female Vet.

***************************************************

Actually right now "Combat Military Sexual Assault" is the main page on Vets for Peace site.

http://www.veteransforpeace.org/

VOICE [phone]

http://www.veteransforpeace.org/contact_us.vp.html

[annm4peace]

25. x

x

[BlueIris]

26. Horrifying. Terribly sorry for what these women are going through.

Awful.

[Odin2005]

29. There are no words for this.

:grr: