Article content

Almost 1,000 officer cadets are being punished at the Royal Military College because an unknown number of their fellow students have been wearing jeans during their off hours away from the Kingston campus.

The action is aimed at the entire officer cadet corps at the college even though there are no actual rules allowing group punishment.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Updated - Battle over jeans at the Royal Military College results in 1,000 cadets being punished Back to video

The cadets have been confined to the grounds of the college and are undergoing a series of dress and room inspections as well as cleanup duties around the site for failing to follow the dress rules while off campus. The cadets say they were also brought out on parade Friday in frigid weather but not allowed gloves or hats as part of punishment that started March 1 and ends March 9.

Rules prohibit the wearing of jeans during off hours, a regulation a number of officer cadets have continually broken, according to the college.

Col. Chris Ayotte, director of cadets at the Royal Military College, said the issue isn’t about jeans – it’s about whether the officers in training can follow orders. “One of the things we’re trying to do is make sure our young officers understand the importance of following lawful orders,” he explained in an interview with Postmedia. “It’s not only allowed us to be successful in our daily jobs in the military in garrison in Canada but it’s certainly extremely important on operations and in difficult situations. You can’t be selective about the rules or policies that you follow.”