Compulsory military service for women? Austria discusses equality in the military!

Compulsory military service for women? Austria discusses equality in the military!

In Austria, the introduction of conscription for women is increasingly being discussed. This debate gets new impetus after Denmark recently took this step. The President of the Austrian Official Society, Erich Cibulka, supports the idea of ​​compulsory military service for women and points out that equality gain in importance. Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner (ÖVP) had previously spoken out against this idea and referred to the lack of equality. Women in Austria currently have the opportunity to do a voluntary basic service, which is only partially responsible for the society, such as Exxpress.at reports.

CIBULKA also calls for a exercise obligation for all soldiers to increase military operational readiness. According to its proposals, basic military service could be divided into eight months of basic training and four months of exercises. In this context, he would like to regulate the number of basic military servants according to military needs. In addition, conscientious conscience service would have to do community service. An expert commission of the Federal Army is currently checking whether the duration of the basic military service of six months should be extended.

women in the military debate

This discussion about conscription for women is part of a greater social discourse on equality and gender equality, which is becoming more important not only in Austria, but also in Germany. There, the Union faction vice Johann Wadepuhl argues for equal treatment of all genders in military service. He demands no distinctions between women and men, which seems all the more relevant, since the average values ​​for parental leave and unpaid working hours between the sexes still have significant differences. Women do an average of nine hours of unpaid work more than men per week, which corresponds to about 20 days a year, so taz.de .

The problem is complex; Despite legal equality in the Basic Law, there are still differences. Examples are the gender pay gap of 18% and the spouse splitting, which is considered unjust. Patricia Hecht calls for conscription for all genders as a means of avoiding discrimination. Doris Akrap also emphasizes that the discussion about equality should not stop at military questions.

the social implications

In view of the fact that 331 people, mostly women died in 2023, died through partnership, it becomes clear how important it is to revise the social framework. The state is required to compensate for the existing disappropriations. This applies not only to compulsory military service, but also access to the rights granted in the Basic Law for women who are still insufficiently realized.

The discussion about conscription for women is not only a military affair, but also makes extensive waves into social equality and access to rights. The outcome of this debate could be decisive for the future orientation of equality policy in Austria and beyond.

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