The prime minister was invited on Thursday to comment on the Canadian Press investigation, which revealed that four Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) agents expressed concern about the toxic culture that existed in the intelligence agency’s British office in Colombia .

A CSIS agent claims she was raped in surveillance vehicles nine times in seven months between July 2019 and February 2020 by one of her much older supervisors. Another agent claims he was sexually assaulted by the same man. next year, in 2021.

However, the two women claim they warned their superiors to keep this man away from young CSIS agents. The agents also claim that the internal complaints mechanism at CSIS did not help them.

Mr. Trudeau, who visited Ajax, Ont., on Thursday, called the allegations “very, very concerning.”

“These allegations are absolutely unacceptable,” he said. We must ensure that all people are protected in all workplaces, no matter how sensitive or secret their work, especially those who serve their country. »

The Canadian Press is not naming the women who came forward because they fear legal and professional repercussions or reprisals from CSIS if they reveal their identities.

The women said their supervisors told them that other women had complained that they felt unsafe around the man at the center of the allegations.

“Nothing was done and I heard stories that there was this story of all these women working in our area […] They all had the same thing to say and eventually they all left,” said an SRCS member.

Mr. Trudeau assured that his government had taken these allegations “incredibly seriously” from the start. “And I can assure you that the minister and our entire government are following these issues very closely. »

Non-unionized

Women who say they were attacked said they did not report to police in part because they felt restricted by the CSIS law, which prohibits the identification of secret agents. Violations are punishable by up to five years in prison.

Most CSIS employees, including secret agents, are not unionized.

CSIS spokesman Eric Balsam said in an email that the service “takes all allegations of inappropriate behavior, including harassment, very seriously.” However, he added that it would be “inappropriate” to comment on certain legal issues.

The two CSIS agents who claim they were sexually abused by their colleague have each filed a lawsuit in British Columbia against the federal government.

The case of the first woman who claimed she was raped was dismissed by the court, which ruled that she had not exhausted the internal complaints mechanism at CSIS. The officer, identified in her lawsuit as “Jane Doe,” said she plans to appeal.

The other woman’s complaint has not yet been answered.

The officials said the CSIS complaint mechanism did not help them.

Huda Mukbil is a former CSIS agent who was among a group of Toronto agents who reached a settlement with the government in 2017 after filing a $35 million lawsuit over allegations of racism, sexism and harassment.

She told The Canadian Press that the internal complaints process at CSIS was “completely ineffective.”

Life wasted

Before Mr. Trudeau’s comments, “Jane Doe” said she spoke out publicly because she wanted CSIS to be held accountable.

But she said she and her colleagues have little hope that the agency can be reformed.

The settlement of the Toronto dispute prompted CSIS Director David Vigneault to formally commit to leading an organization in which every employee “promotes a harassment-free workplace.”

A colleague and friend of “Jane Doe,” who supports her claims that the CSIS regional office in British Columbia is a toxic workplace, said Mr. Vigneault’s solemn promise appears to have made little difference.

“We are not going to change the way this organization treats people,” this colleague said. How many millions of dollars did they distribute to those involved in the Toronto affair? […] And nothing has changed. »

“Jane Doe” echoed those comments. “There is such a systemic problem that they should get rid of everyone and start from scratch,” she said.

The other CSIS officer who claims she was sexually abused, identified in her lawsuit as “AB,” said it was extremely difficult to talk about what happened to her because she felt like she would “betray” his colleagues and his country.

But she said the treatment she endured at CSIS pushed her over the edge. “It would have been one thing to risk my safety for a real mission that would have helped the country, but the fact that my mental health and safety were constantly at risk due to the negligence of the leadership there is just as stupid.” as someone who sexually assaults and harasses people…” complained “AB”.

“All of these lives were destroyed and all of these incredible agents were destroyed simply because someone couldn’t control their own sexual urges. That’s what’s killing me about all of this. »