Documents obtained by the Ottawa Citizen reveal that military officials hesitated to apologize to Kristen Adams after she was sexually assaulted while working with NATO allies, primarily due to concerns about how any apology would be reported by the press.
For years, Canada’s armed forces have acknowledged a troubling culture that has fostered abuse and assault, alongside a persistent failure to address these issues. This ongoing crisis has resulted in significant changes at high levels of leadership, eroding public trust and damaging morale within the military.
On December 3, 2022, while serving at a canteen for troops in Latvia, Adams was sexually assaulted by a NATO soldier. After she filed her formal complaint, she was cautioned by the army’s morale and welfare services that she should have been more aware of the job’s risks.
Adams’s contract was cut short by two months to “ensure there is no further risk to your health.” Internal documents acquired by the Ottawa Citizen confirm that the assault was perpetrated by an Albanian soldier. Although the incident occurred at a Canadian-operated facility within Camp Adazi, near Riga, Adams was informed that little could be done as Canadian military police lacked jurisdiction under NATO regulations.
Months later, the morale and welfare services, responsible for supporting soldiers, told Adams they had “gone above and beyond” in their assistance and that they would “no longer entertain further complaints or correspondence from you regarding this issue.”
Despite the media coverage of her case, which sparked outrage within military ranks, no direct apology was ever offered to Adams. Ian Poulter, the head of the army’s morale and welfare services, issued a general apology for the organization’s mishandling of the incident but did not address Adams directly.
Newly acquired documents from the Citizen highlight the military’s concerns about negative media coverage stemming from any apology. Officials from the Department of National Defense explained, “Because the story was unfolding in the pages of the Ottawa Citizen, we did not want to correspond with Ms. Adams in writing because we didn’t want to perpetuate that cycle.”
In a separate email, the chief of staff for Canada’s top military official cautioned Poulter that “Ms. Adams is likely to be coming back with more media coverage.”
Although a formal apology had been drafted, it was never sent to Adams. Sharing her perspective, Adams told the Citizen, “I never did get [one]. That shows you they don’t think they did anything wrong in all of this. It’s disgusting.”
