Jackie Jones, Jeanne Sarson, and Linda MacDonald
43
of women and girls, evidence was given that women and girls suffered non-State torture in sexu
alized human trafficking and exploitation (CPAC, 2014).
Sarson and MacDonald (2014b) submitted a brief to the Senate of Canada detailing patterns of
victimization whereby parents ‘trained’ their very young girls to withstand non-State torture by
‘preparing’ them for sexualized exploitation and oral rape. For example, Hope (not her real name)
described her ordeals as:
The family would stuff and stuff mashed potatoes into my mouth and throat, massage
my throat while speaking ever so softly in voice tones that were trance and hypnotic-in
ducing. This exercise trained me to let the mashed potatoes slide down my throat with
out gagging, which taught and conditioned me not to gag during oral rapes; something
my father and others did very frequently to me . . . . when I was prostituted as a child
(p. 5)..
Women who have survived non-State torture need to be heard. Social inclusion is about being wel
comed to participate in the development of effective preventive interventions (General Assembly,
2010a), including in the development of client centered non-State torture victimization-traumati
zation informed care (Sarson & MacDonald, 2012). International legal frameworks can guide States
to adopt laws that will remove legal discrimination and work to eliminate all forms of violence
against women and girls (General Assembly, 2012). To address non-State torture, criminal legal
recognition must be achieved to prevent the trivialization and impunity that is promoted when
no legal framework exists for addressing it. Such a legal framework nurtures the development of
knowledge about non-State torture crimes, and advances investigative skills regarding the cruelty
of non-State torturers’ tactics. Victimization impacts are identified and these criteria assist in pro
ducing a non-State torture victimization-traumatization-informed legal framework that provides
insights into the reliability and accuracy of women’s testimonies, allowing the women to truth-tell
and have their credibility respected. This was attempted in 2016 in Canada.
Bill C-242, Testimonies, A Victim Impact Statement, and the Legal
Status Quo
On February 26, 2016, the Private Members Bill C-242, was an Act to amend the Criminal Code
to include inflicting torture. It was introduced to Members of the Canadian House of Commons
(Parliament of Canada, 2016a) with the aim of criminalizing non-State torture. Bill C-242 sought
to align Canadian law with international law by amending Canada’s Criminal Code. At the second
reading, the Bill passed, following discussions that amendments were required. The Bill was then
referred to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights to be studied (Parliament of
Canada, 2016b). Briefs and other evidence were provided by advocates (Sarson & MacDonald,
2016c) and by a woman (Lane) and her husband (Holodak) (2016). Lane discussed her family-based
non-State torture ordeals in hopes that the Standing Committee would understand what non-State
torture victimization meant. She wrote:
I survived decades of brutal and unimaginable torture at the hands of my father and his
associates (non-State actors) . . . . Their psychological programming, demented acts of
brutality and sexualized exploitation, humiliation and degradation began when I was
approximately two years old. It lasted into my mid-twenties at which time I fled.
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