Chapter 13 Women in the Armed Forces This chapter explores different models and good practices regarding women’s participation in the armed forces, as well as the impact of the increased integration of women into a traditionally male domain. It underlines the main barriers still facing female soldiers at all stages of their military career, while highlighting mechanisms for the protection and enforcement of women’s human rights. It also deals with harassment and violence and with mechanisms and policies for promoting equality of all military personnel. This chapter looks at the issue of women in the armed forces as one of diversity management, i.e., recruiting and retaining employees from different demographic backgrounds and, in particular, about using their qualities in an optimal way.222 Special attention is paid to women’s capacity to contribute positively to security, particularly in light of the many new roles that modern armed forces have, varying from monitoring missions and delivering humanitarian aid, to peacekeeping and peace-building missions. (As child care is a parental responsibility, this issue is addressed in Chapter 17, “Working Conditions”.) 1. Relevance The proper role for women in the armed forces is an ongoing debate in most democracies. Although women’s military opportunities have expanded over the past thirty years in the OSCE region, even militaries with the highest participation of women among their ranks, e.g., the United States, count only up to 15 per cent female military personnel.223 Until recently, women were generally confined to combat support, logistics, administration, and nursing and related medical positions. Women can currently participate in the armed forces in most OSCE participating States, and there appears to be a general acceptance of women in a wider spectrum of military roles. Nevertheless, servicewomen are still frequently exposed to discriminatory policies and actions. For example, in many countries women are excluded from combat positions. Furthermore, women face discrimination in their careers, being promoted only to command positions on an exceptional basis. In this respect, differences in the treatment of women exist not only between states, but also between the navy, air force, and army within one state.224 2. Issues at Stake Women’s full participation as citizens Women’s participation in the armed forces is foremost a human rights issue, which concerns women’s right to have access to the military profession. Taking part in the nation’s defence and armed forces is an integral part of the rights and duties associated with citizenship. If women are excluded from participation in such an important national institution as the armed forces, they are in an unequal position vis-à-vis male citizens. It could be 222  Jan van der Meulen and Joseph Soeters, “Introduction: the Diversity of Diversity”, in Joseph Soeters and Jan van der Meulen (eds.), Managing Diversity in the Armed Forces: Experiences from Nine Countries (Tilburg: Tilburg University Press, 1999). 223  ODIHR-DCAF questionnaire, question 75. 224  Gerhard Kümmel, “When Boy Meets Girl: The ‘Feminization’ of the Military”, Current Sociology, Vol. 50, No. 5, 2002, pp. 615-639; Donna Winslow and Jason Dunn, “Women in the Canadian Forces: Between Legal and Social Integration”, Current Sociology, Vol. 50, No. 5, 2002, pp. 641-667. 113 Handbook on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Armed Forces Personnel