Premier Wynne there is a Pandemic of sexual abuse in Ontario

Sharon Danley — 

Letter to the Ontario government:

There is a PANDEMIC OF SEXUAL ABUSE and the Ontario Government is shameful in NOT rigorously protecting the citizenry, effectively UPDATING and ENFORCING the laws and IMPLEMENTING RECOMMENDATIONS of THREE Task Forces over 25 years.

It’s a year since the Sex Abuse Task Force Report was originally delivered and STILL NO delivery of that Report to the public.

Poor phone and email response and often voice mail boxes are full in your collective offices. And I only just found out that after the report was FIRST SUBMITTED JULY 31, 2015, where Ms. McPhedran told a few of us it was embargoed, that it was re-submitted December 15, 2015 and again sometime in March, 2016 – AFTER 2 legal and “libel” reviews. What are you hiding from? The truth from victim/survivors? The recommendations? Fear from the CPSO? It appears to have been sanitized, NOT made “better”.

Premier – you tell me to get answers from the Health Minister and then wash your hands of the matter. BUT I get little to zero response let alone answers. As Premier why aren’t you holding your Ministers accountable? Further, why were the Task Force Chairs contracted without remuneration for the multiple re-submissions that were apparently required after the original report was submitted July 15, 2015?

As the taxpayers subsidize the doctors through the Ontario Medical Association for their legal fees and insurances, the question begs asking AGAIN after more than 20 years, why aren’t the doctors’ legal fees made open and accountable to the public and offenders made to pay back the fees? Full protection for offenders and scraps for victims.

Dr. Hoskins – you are in a conflict of interest as a member of the CPSO. Your inaction and lack of respect for victims illuminates your conflict and your uneducated perspective of the issue. The approach you’ve taken smacks of a complete disregard for us and flies in the face of transparency and accountability, an obligation that is concomitant with your position sir. The Toronto Star has seen the report, why haven’t deputants?

Ms. McCharles – only AFTER I had to resign from the Roundtable in Protest did you contact me, even though I had kept you informed. You’re Responsible for Women’s Issues. Yet at no time did your office keep us apprised about the Task Force or its status. And when I asked what the Roundtable would do if the Minister didn’t release the report, I was shut down and shunned by the co-chair. And like offenders in precincts and pulpits, this political offender, was moved to a position on the Federal GBV Advisory Council. The Roundtable and Select Committee are failures in our collective opinion.

Ms. McPhedran – You trivialized the triggers I was experiencing and shared with you in my last email by diminishing my statement to being “disappointed”. It revealed your understanding of a trauma informed, evidence based best practice approach is missing.

And while I appreciate the difficult position you are in, the victimized patients, continue to be re-traumatized with the ongoing triggering of this Task Force fiasco. We came forward in fearful trepidation and in good faith only to be ambushed by the Task Force and violated again.

Further, as we wouldn’t print a Jane Doe’s name without her permission, removing my name from the words I’ve spoken in the Report is equally wrong and I resent the patriarchal stance.

We have lost ALL, and I do mean ALL, respect for this government and ALL the players associated with it when it comes to sexual abuse in ANY form. You’ve been told countless times what the problems are and been offered countless solutions, which you continue to ignore.

You placate, infantilize, trivialize, condescend, ignore and throw crumbs while you beat your chests to the public about the wonderful work you are doing for victims.

You passed Bill 132 allowing yet more self-regulators to adjudicate sexual abuse AFTER you were vehemently warned that self-regulation is self serving and does NOT work.

You made a couple of videos to quell the public’s justifiable outrage over the Ghomeshi debacle – when you should have been putting something out every month AND for all ages. Only focusing on young women shows this government’s lack of understanding that ALL women of ALL ages and ALL abilities experience sexual abuse.

You commissioned The Select Committee, The Roundtable and the Task Force – ALL working in silos and in silence. The one report from the Select Committee was insulting to victims. When you infantilize and trivialize the facts, you trigger victims into a fearful state which eliminates their call to action, a necessary component of their healing. It appears this has been your strategy. And we STILL can’t get the total costs for these failures either.

You give victims 3 hours of “free” legal advice. Are you kidding me? ALL they need to know could be posted online. The system is broken, thus futile and pointless for victims in any event. This is exemplified by throwing crumbs to victims while lawyers get a bureaucratic, elementary job that requires very little reference to case law.

There are a number of solutions I’ve sent you a number of times – and no response. I’m a seasoned, unpaid survivor advocate who has no position, authority or power you can threaten to take away. Result? I don’t do the dance that most of your bureaucrats and service providers dance to continue receiving funding for pay cheques. It’s called sex abuse “management” rather than “eradication” providing a number of jobs on the backs of victims’ pain.

We tell you the pure truth and offer solutions and you ignore us. The shame is collectively yours as you COULD do something BUT your lack of effective action says everything. You just throw us crumbs, the public propaganda and call it a day.

RELEASE THE O R I G I N A L REPORT AND PUBLICLY APOLOGIZE TO US.

Sharon Danley,

Survivors of Medical Abuse

http://www.youtube.com/sharondanleyadvocacy