WUNRN
http://kvinnesak.no/female-conscription-is-not-a-feminist-issue
Norway -
Feminists Say NO to Female Conscription
By Torild Skard,
Former Chair of the Norwegian
Association for Women’s Rights
and President of the Norwegian Upper
House
Representatives
of military institutions now advise countries to look to Norway, because Norway
as the first country in both Europe and NATO has introduced female
conscription. It was adopted by the Norwegian Parliament on 14 June 2013 with
only the Christian Democrats voting against, and now female conscription is
being implemented.
But
feminist organizations protested against female conscription, among others the
Norwegian Association for Women’s Rights (Norsk Kvinnesaksforening, NKF, the
Norwegian Section of the International Alliance of Women, IAW) and the
Norwegian Section of Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, WILPF.
On
3 February 2007 and 27 April 2013 The National Board of the Norwegian Association for Women's
Rights, NKF (the Norwegian section of the International Alliance of Women)
adopted the following statement:
The Norwegian Ministry of Defence for a long time been on a determined look-out for women. In 2004, Parliament set a goal of 15 percent women in the armed forces and 25 percent in the officer candidate schools by 2008. To achieve this, women were called up by the draft board to serve voluntary military service. If voluntariness did not produce the desired results, the Minister of Defence would propose compulsory military service for women.
The Norwegian Association for Women's Rights, NKF, is not opposed to women voluntarily seeking a career in the military if they want to, and the way the system works today, women in fact have the same opportunities as men to join the armed forces. Conscription is something else – it includes everybody and entails the use of force. NKF warns against the exertion of pressure to get women into the military and particularly the introduction of female conscription.
It is difficult to understand why
the Ministry of Defence tries to recruit more women in a situation
where only a small minority of men actually performs military service, because
the need for personnel is reduced. The arguments are put forward that women and
men must be treated equally, that women will help maintain the legitimacy of
conscription and that they will contribute to better defence.
Misconceived Equality
NKF considers female conscription as a misunderstanding of the concept of gender equality and the intentions of the Law on Equality. Gender equality implies first and foremost that women and men should have the same human rights and fundamental freedoms. Women should be valued and allocated power and resources on equal terms with men. But women and men do not have to be alike or do the same things to be equal.
To ensure gender equality, it is
important in many cases that women and men are treated equally. But, they
should not necessarily be treated equally in all situations. In some cases, the
underprivileged gender must be favored to be able obtain similar results.
Actual differences between the lives of women and men must be taken into
account.
Women make an important
contribution to society by becoming pregnant, giving birth and breast-feeding.
Despite many years of active equality policy in Norway, women still bear the
heaviest burden for children, sick and old people. Their efforts in this area
are extensive and socially beneficial. But although women often are double
working, they still earn less than men, own much less than men, have lower
pension and are underrepresented in positions of power and influence. To impose
a new burden such as conscription on women in this situation is not only
unreasonable. It can increase the economic and social gender gaps in society.
Instead
of equality the result will be greater inequality.
According to NKF’s view real
gender equality implies more than the incorporation of women into a social
structure formed by men. Women should have the same opportunities as men to
determine the organization of society. In the efforts to promote equality there
is a risk, however, that the stronger party shapes the weaker in its image.
Over the past decades, women's roles have changed significantly more than
men’s. Thus values and practices that have
traditionally characterized men's roles, have been strengthened, while values and
practices that women traditionally have taken care of, have been weakened. In
the current situation, however, the challenge is to strengthen women’s power
and influence and promote better care practices and values such as equal
status.
Militarization of Women
Forcing women to do military
service, to
legitimize it, is completely untenable. Problems related to conscription must
be resolved on their own terms, not by bringing in a new, hitherto outsider
group.
It is unclear what is meant when
it is stated that the recruitment of women should lead to "better"
defence. It is an illusion to believe that the inclusion of women in
the military machinery at low level, will lead to a significant change of
structures and attitudes. Although women can increase the diversity, they are
not supposed to change the strictly hierarchical organization of the military,
characterized by absolute obedience on the grounds that the soldiers should
learn to defend themselves, use violence and, if necessary, kill. Newcomers are
integrated into the system and the prevailing culture and women are
particularly exposed in such a male dominated organization. The result is that
women are militarized, and the military is essentially not changed.
Important to Focus on
Non-Violence
is the view of NKF that in
today's world it is more important to increase the focus of both women and men
on disarmament, non-violent conflict resolution, peacekeeping, peace negotiations
and reconstruction of communities than to broaden the basis for military
activities. Instead of military service enthusiastic young people who want to
contribute to international peacekeeping, should be offered training and
assigned tasks on this basis.