Swiss Senate committee considers compulsory military service for women

Commission considers compulsory service for women Keystone-SDA

A Swiss Senate committee stated that Switzerland should not introduce citizen’s service as proposed by an initiative, but is considering a counter-proposal to extend compulsory military service to women.

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The initiative “For a Switzerland that gets involved” (so-called citizens’ service initiative), submitted in October 2023, calls for all young people to contribute to the community and the environment, not just young Swiss men in the army. This commitment could be fulfilled through the army, civil service, civil defence or other militia services, with financial compensation.

The House of Representatives backed the government’s decision, rejecting the initiative without offering an alternative. Meanwhile, the Security Policy Committee of the Senate has paused its review and is now considering putting forward a direct counter-proposal, according to a press release from parliamentary services on Tuesday.

The committee, by a narrow 6-5 vote with 2 abstentions, has directed the administration to draft a proposal for introducing compulsory service in the security sector, as outlined in the government’s report on the development of the compulsory service system.

Mandatory military service for women

The counter-proposal must also include extending compulsory military service to women, according to the press release. The majority believes these measures will ensure the armed forces and civil defence are adequately staffed and address a key demand of the initiative: broadening civic service obligations to a larger segment of society.

The Committee voted 10 to 2 to table a motion to swiftly and adequately reinforce the armed forces and civil defence to meet current geopolitical challenges. To achieve this, the security service model should be prioritised over the needs-based service model.

A minority, however, thinks the government should first thoroughly explore various options for developing the compulsory service system and, as planned, choose one by the end of 2027. They suggest Parliament make a decision after this process is complete.

What is your opinion? Join the debate:

Translated from French with DeepL/sp

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