Thank you.
What we're saying, then, is that we're going to allow this process to be open. It can take an infinite amount of time. How does that defend the person who's been victimized? How does that create a system of safety for that person?
When we had witnesses come forward, this was one of their biggest concerns. They want a system that will allow a safe haven for them to come forward with their stories, and allow them to know that action is going to be taken on their behalf. If you're not going to put teeth in it, then there's no point to this legislation because, at the end of the day, that's the system we have right now, a system where there are very few accountability measures in place.
So, individuals come forward. They have concerns. They express them, which is an incredibly vulnerable thing to do, an incredibly brave thing to do, and then there's a system that's purposely situated to fail them. That investigation can go on for months, years, or decades because there's no timeline in place for when that actually has to be concluded and when that report has to be submitted.
Those are empty words, then, from this government in terms of protecting victims and wanting to take a stand for them. That's just simply not true if you don't put the accountability mechanisms in place. One very simple way that the accountability mechanism can be put in place is by offering a timeline to victims. It's the least we can do to defend them.