A meeting of women soldiers serving in the units of the Black Division was held at the 10th Armored Cavalry Brigade (10BKPanc) Club. The meeting was initiated by Commander Bożena Szubińska, the Ministry of National Defence plenipotentiary for women's military service and chairwoman of the Council for Women in the Polish Armed Forces.
For many years, the commander has worked on gender integration in the military, representing women soldiers from various branches of the Armed Forces, both domestically and internationally, and participating, among other things, in NATO activities aimed at increasing the role of women in shaping security and defence.
In addition to women serving in the Black Division units (4pplot Czerwieńsk, 11bdow Żagań, 17BZ Międzyrzecz, 34BKPanc Żagań, 23 PA Bolesławiec, 10BKPanc Świętoszów), the discussion was attended by the division commander, Brigadier General Jarosław Mika, acting commander of 10BKPanc, Colonel Dariusz Nawrocki, and delegations of the women soldiers' disciplinary superiors. The meeting was organized by Second Lieutenant Ewa Andrzejewska, a representative of women soldiers at 10BKPanc.
The meeting began with an address by the commander of 10BKPanc, who briefly characterized the community of women soldiers, who make up 5.9% of all soldiers serving at the Świętoszów unit. He noted that many of the 197 women serving at 10BKPanc have a high level of education, which continues to increase. He also pointed out that the recruitment of women in Świętoszów has been ongoing for 12 years, and since 2009 has been particularly intensive in the enlisted corps. Within three years, 116 women began their service in it, performing tasks in various subunits and positions. It is also the “youngest” corps in terms of the average age of women soldiers.
A very important issue highlighted by the commander was that more than half of the women serving in Świętoszów are married and raising children. Therefore, the military unit's command has introduced initiatives to make it possible to combine service with motherhood and to support the functioning of women and the needs of military families. These include plans to create a nursery-kindergarten complex in the near future, an already operating skate park, and a recreational facility built next to a school that enables young people to spend their free time actively. The facility was initiated and conceived by the commander of 10BKPanc, Brigadier General Cezary Podlasiński. For several months, women living in Świętoszów have also been able to receive specialist gynecological care at the local clinic.
Speaking next, Commander Szubińska first presented how the situation of women's military service had developed over the course of 25 years. She highlighted achievements in this field, noting that although the percentage of women in the Armed Forces is low compared with other countries, recently we have managed to overtake Turkey in this respect. She then briefly described NATO countries' position on gender equality, the relevant legal regulations, and the basis and effects of measures taken so far to promote women's participation in defence and security maintenance—matters defined by the directive on implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1325, particularly in areas threatened by armed conflict. As experience from mission areas has shown, women's skills, approach and ease in establishing contacts have repeatedly helped meet challenges, solve problems and accelerate the process of stabilizing situations in threatened areas.
The chairwoman of the Council for Women drew attention to gradual changes and the greater openness of the military environment, which give women soldiers opportunities to take command positions and other positions that for years were exclusively the domain of men. Women now have a better start and more equal opportunities to become specialists in their positions and acquire appropriate qualifications—all thanks to admission to military schools and training on an equal footing with men. Women now have an open path to promotion, as well as the opportunity to participate in missions in positions corresponding to those they hold at home.
Referring to the previous speakers' statements, the commander of the Black Division shared his observations on military service, both by women soldiers and men, giving examples of determination, conviction that the effort undertaken was worthwhile, and the ability to overcome one's weaknesses. He also noted that, given the great complexity of the tasks, an individual approach to a problem is often the only way to develop the best solutions. “The right atmosphere must be built at every level of command, while preserving the hierarchical nature of the environment, and dialogue between women and men must be present already at the lowest level,” the general said. “At the same time, I would like an advisory body modeled on a women's council to be established at division headquarters in the near future, so that it would not disrupt the chain of command in essence, but would, among other things, help identify problems requiring solutions at higher levels.”
In the second part of the meeting, Lieutenant Jakub Wolak, the brigade's legal officer, gave a lecture on the legal regulations governing women's military service. He discussed legislative solutions and recent changes to laws and regulations concerning, among other things, maternity and paternity leave, uniforms, protection of pregnant women and marriages of professional soldiers.
Second Lieutenant Ewa Andrzejewska discussed the issue of a mixed-gender army, the problems the military community may encounter in the process of moving from segregation to integration, and how they can be dealt with effectively using knowledge of several psychosocial mechanisms. The discussion covered the creation of stereotypes, different communication styles of women and men, favouritism, differentiation and, finally, off-duty experiences with the opposite sex. A bold question was also posed: “The weaker sex—weak command?” in the context of debunking myths related to women's military service. Requirements imposed by superiors and non-discriminatory, prejudice-free command result in an appropriate level of discipline, and the outcome is nothing other than cohesion within the military community.
The meeting concluded with a discussion and an exchange of opinions and conclusions brought by delegates from the units. Captain Katarzyna Sala, commander of a mechanized company in Międzyrzecz and a member of the Council for Women's Military Service, who represented the Women's Council at the Scientific Conference of the Armed Forces Physical Education Leadership, briefly presented the matters discussed at the conference to the delegations gathered at the meeting. Her presentation concerned planned changes, including the standardization of physical education examination standards in all military schools, changes to the physical education examination assessment system, which would become a points-based system more accurately reflecting observed progress or decline in soldiers' physical fitness, and finally changes to the running event testing women's endurance. A gradual, phased transition from a 1-kilometre distance to 3 kilometres is planned, along with the creation of new running standards based on the population of women serving in various military units.
During the discussion and exchange of observations, opinions emerged that women's military service, although it initially caused great concern both among male commanders and among women who were breaking new ground, is not inferior in quality. Very often, women demonstrate much greater commitment, determination, discipline and immense respect for the uniform, while also learning collegiality and solidarity from their coworkers. There are some women who are typically demanding, but they are exceptions. “They, too, should try to adopt the other side's perspective, because most women soldiers do not view their posts in terms of their own benefits; for them it is service, and service is teamwork and cooperation,” Commander Szubińska said, drawing on her many years of experience serving women soldiers.
(information: Second Lieutenant Ewa Andrzejewska/ii)