Sheila Copps Shines Light On Sexual Assault Within Parliament


On November 10, Sheila Copps, a former Deputy Prime Minister in Canada, published an article for The Hill Times Online shining a light on sexual abuse within Parliament.

In the wake of Jian Ghomeshi being fired from the CBC due to complaints of abuse and possible rape, Copps defended him. Now, she is recanting that defense and apologizing for making any remarks in the first place.

I should never have weighed on an issue as sensitive as that without taking the time to hear the other side of the story.”

There’s nothing new about a politician apologizing for statements they made about one thing or another. It’s pretty much par for the course throughout the world. What is generating interest in the media is what Copps wrote after that. As she began to discuss the “toxic mix” of politics and sex, she indicated that she had been a victim of sexual assault when she was a Member of the Provincial Parliament. Copps revelations are shocking.

I was sexually assaulted by another Member of the Provincial Parliament within a year of my arrival at Queen’s Park at the age of 28. We were both on a Parliamentary tour studying violence against women. The incident occurred when we exited a hotel elevator after enjoying a group dinner following a day-long session in northern Ontario. I pushed back on my assailant, kicking him where it hurts, when he tried to force me up against a wall and kiss me.”

Copps went on to say that she didn’t press charges because she chalked “the incident up to personal misjudgment.”

Although the idea of why she didn’t press charges might shock some people, Sheila Copps made it clear in the rest of her article that there likely would have been no other options if she had decided to take action.

Even though Copps’ admits she was raped, there was little that authorities could do. During that time in her life, she came to find that police had no jurisdiction over Parliament Hill and that any assault or rape that happened within the Parliament had to be tried and investigated solely within the Parliamentary Precinct.

But as long as the investigation occurs solely within the Parliamentary Precinct, neither the accuser nor the accused will have the same right to due process afforded Jian Ghomeshi.”

Sheila Copps’ article shows the dangers of any group being above the law.

[ Image courtesy of Huffpost ]

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