A leading member of the U.S. House of Representatives is demanding an investigation into charges that U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan were ordered to ignore Afghani soldiers sexually assaulting young boys.
It’s the latest development in a crisis that began after reports surfaced that a US sergeant is being forced out of the military for stopping an Afghani commander from raping a little boy. Several other soldiers have since come forward claiming it was US military policy to discourage soldiers from interfering in such vile sexual assaults.
The New York Times reported that Army Green Beret SFC Charles Martland and CAP Dan Quinn beat up an Afghan militia commander who was working with the Americans but also was discovered to have kept a boy chained to his bed as a sex slave.
Now, according to the Associated Press, Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif. (himself a Marine Corps veteran), and others want a full investigation to officially determine whether military commanders ordered troops not to stop such sexual assaults and how high this scandal may go. Hunter said Martland must leave the Army by Nov. 1, because his intervention to stop a child rape triggered a negative mark on his service record.
Hunter is asking Defense Secretary Ash Carter to review the case, saying he has little confidence that the Army leaders will admit they made an error in deciding to punish Martland.
“I hope that when making a decision between supporting an elite warrior like Martland or a child rapist and criminal, the organizations or individuals in a position to make a decision will side with Martland,” Hunter said in a letter to Carter earlier this month.
Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, says the U.S. has no policy directing forces to overlook human rights abuses. Davis told reporters on Monday that under the Obama administration’s lead, U.S. troops can report such incidents through their chain of command, but added that sexual assault of children, “while abhorrent, it’s fundamentally an Afghan law enforcement matter.”
The State Department, in its annual human rights report, has consistently said that sexual abuse of children remains pervasive in Afghanistan. And it documents the practice called “bacha bazi” — which means dancing boys. Bacha Bazi involves the sexual abuse of boys, often by powerful or wealthy local businessmen, who sexually abuse young boys trained to dance in female clothes.
In its 2014 report, the State Department said that many child sexual abusers are not arrested, and “there were reports security officials and those connected to the ANP (Afghan National Police) raped children with impunity.”
A number of U.S. House and Senate members have asked the Army about Martland’s case.
Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., sent a letter to Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, calling for the Pentagon to reverse what he said was its policy of ignoring sexual abuse of children in Afghanistan.
“It is bad enough if the Pentagon is telling our soldiers to ignore this type of barbaric and savage behavior, but it’s even worse if we are punishing those who try to stop it,” said Buchanan in the letter. “The only people who should be punished are the ones who created and condoned this immoral and savage code.”
According to Hunter and others familiar with the 2011 incident, Martland acted professionally. But Hunter said that a commanding general signed an order of reprimand against Martland saying his conduct during the incident was inexcusable and “demonstrates a flagrant departure from the integrity, professionalism and even-tempered leadership I expect from all soldiers of this command, especially a special forces professional.”
According to defense officials, an investigation into the incident resulted in what the Army calls an “adverse action” — essentially a black mark — on Martland’s personnel record. Under the Army review process, soldiers can be forced out if their performance doesn’t mean the standards for continued service.
The Associated Press contributed to this article
When did wrong doing take over as the way to go. More and more we see bad overriding good. These soldiers should be commended not reprimanded! Where in our History and law does it say ignore an assault on a Child? Is this how low our Government and Military authorities have fallen? To punish someone for standing up and saying this is wrong is a crime in itself. May God have mercy on those poor children and may He strike down the abusers and condoners of this abuse.
With a homosexual Muslim as the commander in chief, not only are out troops put at a disadvantage, but the whole country would appear to be in cahoots with all those Muslim homosexuals , child molesters. Gay Obama would be so proud. With the Republicans winning the house and congress, it is amazing that that pervert is not yet doing hard time, instead of playing golf, or sleeping with the Iranians.
This action by arabs is epidemic in ALL Arab countries. Homosexuality and perverse behavior dominate this culture. Why would it not? It also dominates our society buy thankfully to a much lesser degree.
Larry, I disagree, Afghans people are not Arabs, they may be Muslim, definitely not Arabs. you may need to do more study to be able to know the difference between all those different ethnic people in that region, I am Arab and Moslem, I was born and raised in a Moslem country, the punishment for a child rape is death penalty. I disagree with you regarding homosexuality and perverse behavior dominate more this society to a higher degree
it dominate
Martland and Quinn deserve medals! It’s unbelievable that they are punished for defending basic human rights!
Give that soldier a medal, and early retirement for the officer(s) who are persecuting this man.
yes yes here here well said!
The bible predected that good would be bad and bad would be good,it would’nt be long befor all evil doers will stand before GOD
This has been going on since Cheney/bush set our troops there many years ago….. This is NOTHING new…. It was the policy going in from many years ago…. Yet, you make this sound like it is a change in policy on Obama’s watch… Are you funded by the GOP or the Koch dark money polls?
Are you one of Obama’s boy toys, why you try to protect his perversions?
What would policy be if we entered Iraq and places where isis exists and found out the organized sex slavery of women, women owned by isis members for sex duty on demand, was true? Look the other way? And where is HRC and her women’s rights campaign? Does it apply in islam? Looking the other way would be PC like this story is about? There were some problems with our own troops in Germany after WWII. To the victor belongs the spoils? Back then the govt did not provide condoms like O is prone to do?
The services have ALWAYS provided condoms… If you’d served, you would have known that
Not in the 50s. We were just informed of the brutal way they would treat an infection.
What do you expect from a culture that is backwards and violent. Someone tell me I’m wrong, but an Afghan militia commander is allowed to do this to children while people look the other way and we think we can make lasting changes for the better in this country??? Then the US soldiers who stopped this animal can be reprimanded and possibly forced out of the military? Has the world gone crazy? I’m sure there are Afghan people who are outraged over this, but trying to stop it would be the end of their lives. Only God can stop this and He will…it’s called the Battle of Armageddon.
As a former US Soldier and member of or attached to various military elite groups (2nd Infantry devision, 101’st Air Assault Division and 5th Special Forces Group), I have witnessed things that were completely outrageous. On two different occasions, I risked getting a dishonorable discharge, for ONLY doing the right thing and standing up to (once threatening) a higher ranking officer for conduct that in my world was criminal. The only thing that saved me was because I was an officer and luckily enough for me, there was a higher senior officer who became aware of the impropriety and intervened. There is a quote attributed to Edmund Burke, “the only thing necessary in order for evil to perpetuate is for good men to stand by and do nothing”. I commend SFC Charles Martland and CAP Dan Quinn for refusing to allow evil to perpetuate. As a Muslim, retired US Army officer and special forces operator, I am grateful to the universe for the existence of these two men, and their sense of duty and honor, for their disregard of their own fate in order to do the right thing and for them honoring the soul of man by following God’s law, not some idiot sitting on a throne thinking he is above the law of God. And I commend them from restraining themselves from killing the bastard…because I don’t think I would have had the strength to hold back!
And I just read the following here:
http://thehill.com/policy/defense/overnights/254436-overnight-defense-pentagon-denies-troops-told-to-ignore-afghan
“The Pentagon, Davis said, has “never had a policy in place that directs any military or any government personnel overseas to ignore human rights abuses.” He did not outline whether there were any policies to handle reporting of human rights abuses. The Pentagon condemned the practice, but said it was a local Afghan law enforcement matter.
The White House also said it was concerned about the welfare of the boys, but echoed the Pentagon’s sentiment that it was a local or international law enforcement matter.
So my question is, if this is a “local or international law enforcement matter”, ISN’T THAT THE WHOLE DAMN REASON WE’RE THERE IN THE FIRST FREAKING PLACE????
Also been there did that sir….. Why this is getting reported now is beyond me as our troops have been witnessing this behavior since we were “boots on the ground” working to defeat the Russians….. Personally, I’m thinking there is some political agenda going on here… Not condoning, but why now? As I look at the other stories here, I’m inclined to see this as a further political site of the far right… 🙁
You’re more than welcome to leave, LEFTY…After all, LEFTIES have Rights also…You have obviously drank the Kool Aid.
On the contrary, Sins committed through negligence, are distinguished from those which are committed through contempt.
I answer that, Negligence denotes lack of due solicitude. Now every lack of a due act is sinful: wherefore it is evident that negligence is a sin, and that it must needs have the character of a special sin according as solicitude is the act of a special virtue. For certain sins are special through being about a special matter, as lust is about sexual matters, while some vices are special on account of their having a special kind of act which extends to all kinds of matter, and such are all vices affecting an act of reason, since every act of reason extends to any kind of moral matter. Since then solicitude is a special act of reason, as stated above (Question 47, Article 09), it follows that negligence, which denotes lack of solicitude, is a special sin. St. Thomas Aquinas
Is it true that General Dempsey is a close friend of the coach from Penn State??
I wonder if CIA Agents or FBI agents are involved somehow???
Whoever is guilty for any part of child rape should be buried up to their necks in camel shit
And left to rot until they die
This type of perverted thinking is a further extension of what Obama and his criminal crew bring to America on a daily basis. A real American would give these soldiers a medal, not kick them out of the service for stopping child rape. Think about that for while.
Frankly, I don’t care if this policy started under Bush, Obama or anyone else. It is wrong on every count. If we have any integrity left, we need to put our foot down and say “no more.” I don’t give a rats ass what the Afghan or Muslim tradition is. It is not God’s way to use young boys and girls as sex toys. We may not be able to bring the Afghan people to God, but we sure can be God’s servants while we’re here. We’re either right or we’re wrong. Martland was right and the Army is wrong. As a retired officer, I am disgusted with some of the things going on in our military services.
Welcome to the Obama military. Obama, a true muslim, with a small m.
The general that did not do the right thing is the one that should be ceremoniously removed from the military, He’s obviously a creton of low character,He turned against his own to take the side of a child humping degenerate…Dump the pompous prick……………………..Former pvt 1951 SB
It staggers me to actually understand why people do what they do, yes I understand that children are raped, abused, murdered and tortured everyday in every country – why – because people who perform these acts, feel entitled to have whatever, whenever they choose
It is called “free will left unchecked” – now who shall we blame for this – the Moslems, the Israeli’s, the Presidents, Religious beliefs, whites, blacks, yellows, reds, how about the person in the mirror
Ask yourself why we are helping and supporting murder and mayhem – ask yourself “If it were my son/daughter would I walk away” – If you say yes start reading from the top
the world needs to grow up and learn to share their help and support to educate humanity about HUMANITY –
AS A RETIRED MILITARY OFFICER, I CAN NOT SIT BACK AND SAY NOTHING ABOUT THIS KIND OF BEHAVIOR ON THE PART OF SOME “LEADERS”. SUPPOSE IT WERE THEIR CHILD WHO WAS BEING RAPED, WOULD THEY LIKE FOR SOMEONE TO STEP IN AND STOP IT, OR WOULD THEY SAY LET THE CREEP CONTINUE?? IF OUR “LEADERS” HAVE SUCH A POLICY TO IGNORE SUCH ACTS, I HOPE THAT OUR TROOPS SAY “TO HELL WITH IT”, AND DO THE RIGHT THING FOR THE CHILD. AND I HOPE THAT THERE ARE LEADERS IN POSITIONS THAT WILL SUPPORT THESE TROOPS FOR THEIR DECENCY AND COMMON SENSE. I DON’T CARE WHOSE WATCH THIS BEGAN ON, “WRONG IS WRONG” PERIOD. (MEL FOWLER)
Thank you Charles Martland and Dan Quinn for stopping this barbaric afghan or muslim from torturing this boy in this way this time. If they are not backed up by the US military then how will this poor boy ever be free of this abuse? The abuse is so horrific that I cannot even bring myself to say what kind it is. These two men show strong moral values and respectfulness for children who are our most valuable assets. Above all, our job here on this earth is to look after our children and we expect our military, police, and any other authorities to always have the child’s safety and comfort secured. This is so appalling that these leaders of the US military would penalize these good men. These men are to be honoured by we the people and given a medal. You two men are what gives this world a ray of hope.
He said that after complaining to management
about his order, he was told to get out and
not to come back. What reaction did the item achieve – personally to you or
with other parties. However, we also hear from men that had their prostate stimulated for
the first time and many report that they experienced an intensified orgasm like never before.