Thank you for your question, Mr. Brunelle-Duceppe.
People are being treated far too late, until they are at the end of their rope. For me, personally, it wasn't until I said I was going to do magic that I was taken seriously. We always said we didn't break the rules of the Canadian Armed Forces. The harassment was always on the borderline of what is right and what is wrong. I had to say that I was going to take my own life if it didn't stop. I even mentioned what I had.
At first, I was even asked why I would talk to the media. I said that the day I was going to take my life, I would write a letter speaking out about what was happening in the Canadian Armed Forces and that they wouldn't have the chance to hide all the suicides they were hiding. I told them that the media would be made aware of what happened in the Canadian Armed Forces and where to find my body if I ever did it. I was asked why I would notify the media. I said it was because they were hiding the reality of what we are going through.
So, they act much too late. Suicides occur almost every day among our members, whether they are active or not. This is unacceptable. When they say that they talk about mental health every day, that they are doing everything they can to prevent suicides, and that they provide support and care to members, it's not true. It's not true that we have all that.