The commander of the Canadian army says he plans to issue a special order that will give individual army units across the country "explicit direction" on how to deal with soldiers suspected of hateful conduct and extremism.
Lt.-Gen. Wayne Eyre told CBC News he also will reinforce the message personally by convening a meeting of all commanding officers and regimental sergeants major — 450 mid-level leaders — to discuss the problem of far-right infiltration of the military.
The action comes after a CBC News investigation of a Canadian Ranger unit uncovered how Erik Myggland, a British Columbia reservist who openly supported two far-right groups, was allowed to continue serving even after he had been identified by military counterintelligence and interviewed as a potential threat.
The directive also comes as prosecutors in the U.S. pursue firearms charges against former Canadian army reservist Patrik Mathews, who is accused of recruiting for a white-supremacist organization in the States.
One anti-racism organization, The Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center, said it is pleased to see such steps being taken — but questions whether the navy, the air force and other branches of the military are prepared to follow suit.
Eyre, who acknowledged last week that the army has a growing problem of right-wing extremism, also reiterated his determination to "crush" hateful ideology and acts in the ranks. (more...)
Army commander vows to issue special order to weed out extremists in the ranks
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