Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - September 2, 2020, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A8 A 8 WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2020 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COMNEWS I CANADA Many aspects of this year have felt unfamiliar. As journalists, we are capturing history in the making. To subscribe call 204-697-7001 or visit winnipegfreepress.com/subscribe A STRONG MANITOBA NEEDS A STRONG FREE PRESS. STRENGTHEN BOTH BY BECOMING A SUBSCRIBER TODAY. As Manitobans continue to navigate 2020, we’re here for you. Our mission is important. If you’re a subscriber, thank you for supporting the delivery of reliable information. If not, please consider purchasing a subscription today. O TTAWA — The RCMP says it is addressing “lessons learned” from the force’s handling of em- ployee complaints about bullying by a senior director who now awaits trial on national-security charges. The Mounties asked consultant Al- phonse MacNeil to examine the RCMP’s response to allegations that Cameron Jay Ortis, who led the force’s National Intelligence Co-ordination Centre, en- gaged in degrading and abusive behav- iour from 2016 onward. Ortis made headlines one year ago upon being charged under the Security of Information Act for allegedly reveal- ing secrets to an unnamed recipient and planning to give classified information to an unspecified foreign entity. MacNeil’s review, completed earlier this year, has just come to light through a lawsuit filed by three employees who describe miserable experiences work- ing for Ortis. The employees say the RCMP failed to act on complaints that Ortis belittled them, undermined their value and work, and caused significant distress and mental suffering. MacNeil interviewed close to 60 people, including senior RCMP leaders past and present, and reviewed policies and procedures to determine if they were adequate, said Catherine Fortin, an RCMP spokeswoman. “The objective was to document find- ings, and identify lessons learned to inform policies and practices going for- ward,” she said Tuesday in response to questions from The Canadian Press. The Mounties have not publicly re- leased MacNeil’s report. However, a statement of claim filed in Ontario Superior Court by the three employees says MacNeil concluded that a failure in leadership occurred at all levels of senior management in the handling of the concerns and com- plaints about Ortis. The lawsuit, citing a redacted version of the MacNeil report provided to the plaintiffs in late June, says the consult- ant also found: • the failure in leadership reflected a lack of concern or consideration for the experiences of, and potential long-term impacts on, intelligence centre employ- ees; • senior management failed to act despite being made aware of Ortis’s be- haviour; • a need to more carefully screen who is placed in leadership positions; • the harassment complaint system is significantly flawed, ineffective, and “as it stands today is not serving the RCMP well”; • the internal grievance system “as it exists today in the RCMP is broken,” does not work for the employee or the organization, creates “a feeling of in- security and lack of confidence in the organization,” and “is not effective and is not achieving the desired outcome”; • the intelligence centre employees affected by Ortis’s conduct have experi- enced, and continue to deal with, harm and damages flowing from his behav- iour and the force’s inaction. Fortin said while the RCMP cannot comment on matters before the court, there is no room for harassment in the force, and “a management action plan” is in the works to address MacNeil’s findings. The statement of claim filed in court, however, says the RCMP continues to fail to act on employee concerns. “With the exception of vague refer- ences to providing some amorphous fu- ture training to affected employees, the RCMP has taken no action, nor provided any particulars of planned action, in re- sponse to the concrete findings and rec- ommendations of the MacNeil report.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday that Public Safety Minister Bill Blair was “looking into” the matter. Blair’s office said he was unavailable for an interview, and provided no infor- mation on what he was doing about the case. “Canada’s intelligence and security agencies work tirelessly to protect the safety of Canadians, and all employees deserve to be treated with respect,” said Craig MacBride, a spokesman for Blair. “We remain committed to taking whatever action is necessary to ensure the RCMP is free from workplace ha- rassment and discrimination.” — The Canadian Press HALIFAX — Four months after a gun- man killed 22 people in rural Nova Sco- tia, residents of the village where the shooting started have decided to dis- mantle a makeshift memorial outside a former church, partly because the roadside shrine continues to attract un- wanted gawkers. The councillor for the Portapique area, Tom Taggart, said Tuesday the memorial — festooned with flowers, cards, posters and stuffed animals — will be removed this weekend. He said residents have grown weary of vehicles stopping at the church and then heading to nearby Portapique Beach Road, the neighbourhood where the lone shooter killed 13 people on April 18 be- fore murdering nine others the next day in several other communities in north- ern and central Nova Scotia. “It has just gotten to be too much for the residents,” Taggart said in an inter- view, noting that a smaller memorial at the entrance to the neighbourhood was removed in May. “They’ve been very patient and under- stand the need for people to grieve. But at the end of the day, it has to stop. It is still very traumatic and very raw, not only the families of the victims, but also the families that lived through the hor- ror that night.” Some residents have said they feel like they’re living in a fish bowl. Others have posted signs pleading for privacy. One neighbour told Taggart that 187 vehicles had cruised past her home one evening a few months ago. Taggart said traffic through the neighbourhood was particularly heavy this past weekend. On Monday night, during a service for one of the families, Taggart asked one relative if it was time to remove the memorial. “The answer was, ‘It can’t come down soon enough.’” Tiffiany Ward, the head of a volun- teer group that is planning to establish a permanent memorial, said the lurid fascination of some sightseers has tried the patience of grieving residents. “People travelling down Portapique Beach Road, that is just not necessary,” Ward said. “There is nothing there. There is no reason... other than a mor- bid tourist attraction.” — The Canadian Press RCMP says no room for harassment in force Mounties to respond to bullying review JIM BRONSKILL N.S. shooting memorial to be removed ANDREW VAUGHAN / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Residents of Portapique, N.S., have decided to remove the makeshift memorial outside a former church.● MORE CANADA/WORLD NEWS / B3 A_08_Sep-02-20_FP_01.indd A8 2020-09-01 10:36 PM ;