Clayton Matchee
Encyclopedia
Master Corporal Clayton Matchee (born 1965) is a former Canadian
soldier and a central figure in the Somalia Affair
.
A member of the Cree
Flying Dust First Nation reserve, Matchee is one of five children. He joined the Canadian Forces
in 1984, and moved into the elite Airborne Regiment in 1988. The regiment was sent to participate in the humanitarian mission in Somalia
in 1993.
On March 16 a sixteen year old Somali
teenager, Shidane Arone, was caught trying to steal from the Canadian compound, though Arone claimed he was merely searching for a lost child. He was placed in the custody of Matchee, who bound him and proceeded to beat him with his feet, batons, and fists. Matchee was joined by Private Kyle Brown
and the guards posed for photos with Arone's battered body. An investigation found that sixteen soldiers entered the bunker where the beating took place and that Arone's screams would have been audible throughout most of the camp. Matchee was arrested two days later, and coincidentally held in the same cell in which Arone's body had been found. On March 19th, he attempted suicide by hanging himself with a drawstring from his jacket. He was discovered and brought to the National Defence Medical Centre
in Ottawa
. He survived, but suffered massive brain damage
as a direct result. His parents and wife Marj maintained that it was not a suicide attempt, but a bungled attempt to murder Matchee, before acquiescing to the story of an attempted suicide.
He was ruled unfit for trial and has spent some years in Saskatchewan Hospital in North Battleford, Saskatchewan
, close to his home town of Meadow Lake
. A larger scandal erupted over the systemic problems in the military and the attempt to cover up the events. This led to the eventual dissolution of the Airborne and a perceived decline in the reputation of the entire Canadian Forces. Matchee was eventually released from the psychiatric hospital, and from the Canadian Forces, and the charges against him dropped. On September 15, 2008, the Department of National Defense said that because his brain injuries were permanent, Matchee would never be fit to stand trial.
There was speculation that mefloquine
,
an anti-malaria
drug the troops were taking, known to trigger psychotic symptoms in sensitive individuals, played a role in Matchee's actions.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
soldier and a central figure in the Somalia Affair
Somalia Affair
The Somalia Affair was a 1993 military scandal later dubbed "Canada's national shame". It peaked with the brutal beating death of a Somali teenager at the hands of two Canadian soldiers participating in humanitarian efforts in Somalia. The crime, documented by grisly photos, shocked the Canadian...
.
A member of the Cree
Cree
The Cree are one of the largest groups of First Nations / Native Americans in North America, with 200,000 members living in Canada. In Canada, the major proportion of Cree live north and west of Lake Superior, in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories, although...
Flying Dust First Nation reserve, Matchee is one of five children. He joined the Canadian Forces
Canadian Forces
The Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...
in 1984, and moved into the elite Airborne Regiment in 1988. The regiment was sent to participate in the humanitarian mission in Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
in 1993.
On March 16 a sixteen year old Somali
Somali people
Somalis are an ethnic group located in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula. The overwhelming majority of Somalis speak the Somali language, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family...
teenager, Shidane Arone, was caught trying to steal from the Canadian compound, though Arone claimed he was merely searching for a lost child. He was placed in the custody of Matchee, who bound him and proceeded to beat him with his feet, batons, and fists. Matchee was joined by Private Kyle Brown
Kyle Brown (Canadian soldier)
Private Kyle Brown was a Canadian soldier implicated in the death in custody of Somali teenager Shidane Arone.The Canadian supply depot in Somalia was being looted and Arone was suspected of being one of the looters. Master Corporal Clayton Matchee took a lead role in Arone's torture and murder.The...
and the guards posed for photos with Arone's battered body. An investigation found that sixteen soldiers entered the bunker where the beating took place and that Arone's screams would have been audible throughout most of the camp. Matchee was arrested two days later, and coincidentally held in the same cell in which Arone's body had been found. On March 19th, he attempted suicide by hanging himself with a drawstring from his jacket. He was discovered and brought to the National Defence Medical Centre
National Defence Medical Centre
The National Defence Medical Centre was the national and largest hospital of the Canadian Forces in Ottawa, Canada. It served the needs of the members of the military. Constructed in 1961, it was closed in the 1990s due to budget cutbacks in National Defence and Veterans' Affairs Canada...
in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
. He survived, but suffered massive brain damage
Brain damage
"Brain damage" or "brain injury" is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. Brain injuries occur due to a wide range of internal and external factors...
as a direct result. His parents and wife Marj maintained that it was not a suicide attempt, but a bungled attempt to murder Matchee, before acquiescing to the story of an attempted suicide.
He was ruled unfit for trial and has spent some years in Saskatchewan Hospital in North Battleford, Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
, close to his home town of Meadow Lake
Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan
Meadow Lake is a city located in north west Saskatchewan, Canada about north east of Lloydminster and north of North Battleford. On November 9, 2009, it officially became Saskatchewan's 14th city....
. A larger scandal erupted over the systemic problems in the military and the attempt to cover up the events. This led to the eventual dissolution of the Airborne and a perceived decline in the reputation of the entire Canadian Forces. Matchee was eventually released from the psychiatric hospital, and from the Canadian Forces, and the charges against him dropped. On September 15, 2008, the Department of National Defense said that because his brain injuries were permanent, Matchee would never be fit to stand trial.
There was speculation that mefloquine
Mefloquine
Mefloquine hydrochloride is an orally administered medication used in the prevention and treatment of malaria. Mefloquine was developed in the 1970s at the United States Department of Defense's Walter Reed Army Institute of Research as a synthetic analogue of quinine...
,
an anti-malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
drug the troops were taking, known to trigger psychotic symptoms in sensitive individuals, played a role in Matchee's actions.