The Tribune

By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe says the Royal Bahamas Defence Force should be judged not by the misconduct of one or two people, but by how the organisation responds and protects against future failures, a principle guiding the inquiry into alleged abuse at this summer’s Rangers camp in Eleuthera.

“You judge an organisation not by whether one or two people are delinquent,” Mr Munroe told reporters yesterday, “but how the organisation deals with matters and how it fails or succeeds in safeguarding against them.”

He said the Defence Force’s board of inquiry is not only investigating the conduct of a marine accused of abusing participants, but is also assessing whether command oversight and internal systems broke down.

“The purpose of that, over and above dealing with what the marine officer has done, is to examine the systems that operate,” Mr Munroe said, “to work out how this was able to happen in the first place, look at the people who had command authority at the event, and make changes so it could not happen again.”

The camp, held from June 30 to July 19, has prompted police and military investigations following reports of physical assaults, forced consumption of toilet water, and sexually inappropriate behaviour by a supervising officer.

One parent said her son was “visibly shaken” on returning from the camp, describing his experience as “degrading” and filled with humiliating punishments. The accused marine was initially confined to base for eight days, in accordance with Defence Force regulations.

Mr Munroe noted that military regulations allow for an initial eight-day confinement period during internal inquiries — longer than the five days permitted in civilian cases — and said this reflects the Defence Force’s distinct disciplinary structure.

Commodore Floyd Moxey, who assumed command earlier this year, has confirmed the inquiry will examine broader leadership responsibility and whether structural changes are needed to protect minors under the programme’s care.

Officials say they are reviewing the Rangers programme’s operational framework and have already engaged parents in a virtual meeting, pledging continued transparency.

While not commenting directly on the case, Education Minister Glenys Hanna-Martin addressed the broader issue of child exploitation, praising the justice system’s increasingly firm response to such cases.

“There have been many convictions, and many now are in Fox Hill prison, and that is where they need to be,” she said.

Mr Munroe said findings from the Defence Force and police investigations will guide any future disciplinary actions and institutional reforms.