The Minister of National Defense presented this Tuesday the new Defense Sector Plan for Equality 2022-2025, which she intends to include in the organic law of the ministry. the equality officebut he warned that solutions should not be quick.
It is important to remember that there are no quick fixes to ensure equality and long-term, comprehensive efforts involving all stakeholders are needed. The National Defense is committed to doing its part and we know that we must set an example”, defended Helena Carreiras.
The Minister of Defense was speaking at the National Cordoaria, in Lisbon, where the Sectoral Plan for Equality in National Defense was presented, valid until 2025, which follows the first sectoral plan in this area in 2019.
The document keeps the four lines of action of the previous plan (Equality, Conciliation, Training and Women, Peace and Security) and contains a total of 47 measures, including the inclusion of the Equality Office in the organic law of the Ministry of National Defense, reporting directly to the responsible government official.
According to the document, the objective is to present a decree law to define this new organic structure by the end of 2023.
In the previous sectoral plan, the figure of the gender advisor appeared for the first time in the General Staff of the Armed Forces, branches and National Maritime Authority, together with the offices of the military chiefs, and in this new plan the objective is that These functions are performedpreferably full time“.
Helena Carreiras highlighted two measures in her speech: the introduction, for the first time, of the concept of diversity, which translates into the preparation of a manual of good practices on the promotion of diversity in recruitment and permanence in the Armed Forces.
“On the other hand, we feel the need to harmonize the contents taught in all the courses for the promotion of the Armed Forces, including the preparation of the Outstanding National Forces and Defense Attachés, in order to ensure the coherence and effectiveness of the messages,” he stressed.
Include objectives to promote equality and integration of the gender perspective in strategic Defense documents or “review the classification and selection requirements for access to the Armed Forces”,that allow a greater adaptation of the selection parameters to the tasks to be carried outin line with the Action Plan for the Professionalization of the Military Service (PAPSM), are other measures.
The ministry also intends to increase the participation of women in international operations and missions, specifically in the National Distinguished Forces.
The goal is to increase to 6% by 2025 “the ratio between the number of women in isolated positions and the total number of soldiers in National Outstanding Elements” – the reference value at the end of 2021 being 4%.
The plan is built around four axes: the institutionalization of the gender perspective, the promotion of equality and non-discrimination, the promotion of the participation of women and the promotion of the conciliation of professional, personal and family life and the protection of rights in raising children.
Helena Carreiras recalled that between 2015 and 2021 the percentage of women in the Armed Forces went from 11% to 13%, that there are currently four women general officers in active service (two in the Air Force and one in the Navy) and stressed that Portugal is recognized in NATO “as an example of good practices” for having a specific plan dedicated to this issue and an equality office.
“A defense policy that promotes gender equality and the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda is a policy that challenges us to rethink how security is managed, allowing us to gain a decisive advantage over our adversaries,” he stressed.
The first Sectorial Plan for Equality in Defense 2019-2021 was announced in March 2019, by the current Minister of Foreign Affairs, João Gomes Cravinho, and among the measures, at that time, the creation of the figure of the gender advisor of the bosses. of the military branches, the development of a code of good conduct for the prevention of harassment or the use of non-discriminatory language in official documents and speeches.
Source: Observadora
