EXETER, DEVON (UK) – A trainee chaplain told a tribunal that he left the Royal Navy after he was told to simply ignore the on-ship viewing of pornography to which he took offense.Reverend Mark Sharpe says he quit his training months into the process because he was alarmed at the amount and nature of pornography being viewed below deck on the HMS Albion and HMS Manchester, the two ships on which Sharpe received training.
Sharpe was on board the Albion for a period of two weeks and trained aboard the Manchester for 10 days, according to witness testimony at the hearing.
Sharpe is now suing the Ministry of Defense (MOD), alleging that he has been the victim of sexual harassment and discrimination due to his religious beliefs.
According to reports from the BBC, at Wednesday’s hearing, MOD counsel Wendy Outhwaite asked Sharpe why he didn’t raise a complaint about the pornography while he was actually aboard the ships.
”At that stage I was frightened as to what could happen to me,” Sharpe replied, according to the BBC.
Outhwaite countered that had Sharpe “raised a complaint properly action would be taken,” but Sharpe contends that the intimidation was real and he wasn’t the only one afraid to complain.
Sharpe also denied that he’s exaggerating the situation, saying that the pornography was “horrendous” and “vile,” and added that the “violence was terrifying.”
“I was lying there feeling physically sick at the sound of what was going on,” Sharpe added.
Claiming that he had witnessed an on-board knife fight and people throwing glasses at each other, Sharpe said seeing those events left him too “terrified” to complain through official channels at the time.
“I was upset by the violence, pornography, and offensive sexual behavior,” Sharpe said, adding that he had also witnessed part of a “naked mess session.”
Sharpe also told the tribunal that he was known on board as “the Bish,” and was taunted by sailors calling him a “bible basher,” a “God botherer” and a “devil’s dodger” during his brief time on board the vessels. Sharpe also testified that he was instructed to take off his chaplain’s insignia and clerical uniform while at sea.
According to Sharpe, after he requested to leave the Manchester, he was told he should not complain about the pornography if he valued his career in the Royal Navy. Sharpe testified that one officer told him that “life at sea goes with porn,” and that Sharpe needed to “learn to live with it.”
Sharpe also claimed that another Royal Navy chaplain, Reverend Peter Scott, told him not to pursue a complaint.
After leaving the Manchester, Sharpe made complaints and an investigation commenced. Sharpe’s complaint has already been investigated internally by the MOD, including an appeal to the Admiralty Board.
The Royal Navy has conceded that sexual harassment took place, but denies the claim of religious discrimination, according to the BBC.
Witnesses for the Navy asserted that Sharpe only raised his complaints about the pornography after already deciding he wanted to leave the service because he was homesick and missed his wife.
The tribunal’s hearing is ongoing, with more testimony yet to be heard in the case.
