British Army Chaplain Attempt to bribe and shame to keep silent

An Army chaplain who offered a female soldier £3,000 to withdraw a sexual assault claim used classic victim-blaming attitudes that could deter other women from coming forward, a military justice lawyer has told BFBS Forces News.

Lucy Baston, of the Centre for Military Justice, said Rev Huw Ryden had asked the woman to consider the accused soldier’s career and whether he might harm himself.

She said the case could not be dismissed as a one-off and called for a properly independent body to handle serious complaints of discrimination, harassment and sexual violence.