Army investigates possible discrimination against homosexuals
Published: Thursday, Jun 13th 2024, 12:10
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An investigation is to answer the question of whether homosexuals in the Swiss army have experienced injustice. It is based on a postulate from Zurich SP National Councillor Priska Seiler Graf, which was adopted by Parliament in 2022. The University of Bern was commissioned.
Over the next four years, a research team will investigate whether and to what extent homosexuals or people perceived as homosexuals in the Swiss army experienced injustice between the Second World War and today, and what consequences this had and has for those affected, according to a statement from the Federal Council on Thursday.
The study will also address the question of whether reparation would be appropriate. The report will also make recommendations on how the army should deal with sexual and gender diversity in the future.
According to the Swiss Military Criminal Code, homosexual acts were still punishable until 1992. The Military Criminal Code thus contradicted the Civil Code, which largely legalized consensual sexual acts between adults of the same sex as early as 1942.
Bullying and harassment
According to Michèle Amacker, professor of sociology and co-director of the Interdisciplinary Center for Gender Studies (IZFG), who is also responsible for the research project, there are indications of bullying and harassment in everyday military life, of homosexuals being rejected during recruitment and of possible hindrances to military careers.
There are also indications that it was common practice in the past to apply certain codes for homosexuality. These were entered in the service record booklet, for example, as grounds for unsuitability. According to Amacker, such administrative procedures could also have had a negative impact on private life and professional careers, for example if the service record book had to be shown when applying for a job.
The investigation is Switzerland's first ever official commission to investigate historical discrimination against homosexual people in Switzerland.
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