risks

The suffering of veterans

A play about and starring injured veterans, and recent government data and policies, highlights their suffering.

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Judge fears ‘Deepcut’ culture remains after ‘cover up’ of army recruit sexual abuse

Military staff have failed to learn the lessons of the Deepcut Review and continue to turn a blind eye to the bullying and abuse of young recruits, a judge has claimed.

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“It’s not a game”

Each of the episodes from both series of Our War focuses on a different platoon or company, with varying missions during their tours in Helmand Province (which dated from between 2006 and 2012). Common themes to each of them include the youth of those involved, and the gravity of what is being asked of them.

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Critical portrayals of life in the armed forces in two West End plays

There are two plays on in London's West End currently that depict life in the UK military, and they do so critically. Our Boys', by Jonathan Lewis, at the Duchess Theatre is a revival, having first been performed in 1993. Sandi Toksvig's Bully Boy is at the St James Theatre. There is considerable similarity in the themes of the two plays: why young men join the armed forces, how they are often neglected when injured, and the horror of contemporary war in general.

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Sexual assault and bullying in the armed forces

A parliamentary question reveals that during 2011 there were 228 allegations of bullying or harassment reported to the Service Complaints Commissioner. Another parliamentary question has identified that 'Over the past two and a half years, there have been 53 reported rapes and 86 reported sexual assaults in the Army, the Navy and the Air Force (one per week). Labour MP Madeleine Moon said she was concerned there was a 'culture of silence', with hundreds of victims never reporting attacks.

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One sex attack reported by Armed Forces every week… but real figure could be much higher

One rape or sexual assault is reported by members of the Armed Forces every week. The MP who released the figures believes they could be a huge underestimate, with the true figures closer to an attack a day.

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Why does the UK have the highest proportion of young infantry deaths in Afghanistan

The deaths of 6 soldiers recently in one incident was particularly tragic because of how young some of them were. Four of the six who died were under 21 years old; one was only 19.

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How soldiers deal with the job of killing

"We talk about destroying, engaging, dropping, bagging - you don't hear the word killing”. This article explores the effect of killing on people in the military, how many are unable to kill and others live with the effects of having killed for the rest of their lives. Also see The Kill Factor radio broadcasts.

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Before You Sign Up

An independent website, setting out the pros and cons of enlisting in the UK armed forces and other advice. Contact us for a batch of these cards. Go to beforeyousignup.info

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Before you enlist: the film

“Before You Enlist!” provides a rational voice to counter the seductive and often deceptive recruiting practices of the U.S. military. The message is not “don’t enlist” but rather to provide young people and their families a more complete picture of the life-altering consequences of joining the military – especially in wartime. Latest version: 2018. This short film is from the US so many of the details about recruitment are different from the UK, but the general questions to ask 'before you enlist' are similar.

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