Hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee - Markup of the National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2014

Hearing

Senator HIRONO. Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. And I echo the sentiments of my colleagues in thanking you and the ranking member, but in particular thanking Senator Gillibrand for her leadership and, of course, Senator McCaskill and all the other of
my colleagues here who have focused on this issue like a laser beam.

And this has been going on--sexual assault in the military has been going on for decades. And while I certainly appreciate the chairman's efforts to move us forward, I will not be supporting his amendment, although I acknowledge the improvements that the chair's amendment does constitute.

I think the people who suffer sexual assault in the military, when they think about reporting this, really have two great fears. One is the fear of not being believed because in these cases, it is usually he said, she said, or sometimes he said, he said, and the fear of retaliation. And while I acknowledge, Mr. Chair, that you have in your amendment provision that makes retaliation a crime, I note that the language in the amendment really focuses on retaliation as it relates to personnel matters and that, in your amendment, notes that that is just a minimum.

There are so many ways that retaliation can occur in this environment. You can retaliate--be retaliated on the basis of not so subtle or subtle harassment, or you can be retaliated by having to undergo a psychological evaluation that finds you somehow psychologically--having some kind of psychological disorder. So there are so many ways that retaliation can occur that it is really hard to define.

And so I acknowledge your efforts to try and define it, but I do think that that is one of the biggest, biggest barriers to reporting. And that really is a bottom line issue here, I believe, the non-reporting by thousands and thousands of people who have endured
sexual trauma in the military.

And, yes, it is a cultural issue, and to change the culture, as one of my colleagues said, you have to change the culture. This culture has been going on for decades. And I do believe that sometimes the cultural change can more rapidly occur when you make a structural change, like the sort that Senator Gillibrand is proposing. And I certainly have nothing against the military and their efforts, and I acknowledge their service. But this truly is a very unique kind of crime that requires us to continue to focus in.

And again, I echo my colleagues in saying that we are going to continue to hold our commanders and the military leadership accountable. This is not the end of the discussion. We know that we are going to need to continue to provide oversight as we proceed. Thank you very much.

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