The protection of women veterans should become one of the priorities of veteran policy in Ukraine, said Vitaliy Gersak, head of the NGO “Free and Faithful” and a volunteer soldier, during the international conference “Effective Veteran Policy in Ukraine: International Experience” held on April 11 in Washington, DC.
According to Mr. Hersak, today more than 45 thousand Ukrainian women serve in the Armed Forces, which is more than the total number of armies in some European countries and this number is constantly growing. Over time, we will have tens, if not hundreds of thousands of women veterans whom the current system of veteran policy is simply unable to effectively protect. At the same time, we have a successful American experience of veteran policy that should be taken into account in Ukraine.
According to the organizers of the international conference, there is a gap between what exists in Ukraine and how this system works in the United States. But this is not a sentence, but a temporary shortcoming that we must correct by taking advantage of effective foreign experience and advice from foreign experts who are friends of Ukraine.
The Free and Faithful NGO notes that the integration of American women into the military began 75 years ago, in accordance with the Women’s Military Integration Act signed by President Truman, and in Ukraine this process began only in 2018 with the adoption of the Law on Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men in Military Service. It is quite obvious that our countries started at different times, changed at different speeds, and covered different distances when developing the necessary legal framework. In the United States, more than a dozen federal laws have been adopted to protect women veterans, which is more than the entire existing legislative framework for veteran policy in Ukraine. In total, there are more than 55 federal laws in the United States to protect veterans.
American women veterans have access to the best and most developed network of medical facilities, where the state takes care of their reproductive health, pregnancy and childbirth. Women veterans receive comprehensive preventive examinations, immunization and treatment of chronic diseases. A vocational rehabilitation and employment program helps them continue their education, improve their skills and build a career in civilian life. To help women better utilize the many veterans’ benefits, the Department of Veterans Affairs has established a special public-private partnership that funds organizations that provide assistance to women veterans and their families, as well as research on the challenges they may face in the future. Isn’t this a model of inclusive and human-centered public policy that should be followed in Ukraine?” the conference organizers are convinced.
The international conference “Effective Veterans Policy in Ukraine: International Experience”, initiated by the NGO “Free and Faithful” and held on April 11 in Washington, DC, was aimed at taking into account the American experience in reforming the state veterans policy in Ukraine. The discussion was attended by Ukrainian and American politicians and experts, including Piteh Husi, an analyst at The Hudson Institute, John Kilmer, founder of Valicor US, Colleen Denny, European Affairs Director at Spirit of America, Daniel White, analyst, Oleksiy Ilyashenko, former Deputy Minister of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine (2019-2022), Megan Weatherman, President of the R. T. Weatherman Foundation Megan Mobbs, President of the Women’s War Memorial Foundation Phyllis Wilson, CEO of Reach (Reach Tactical LLC.) Josh Marcano and others. The discussion was attended by over 50 participants and featured 17 presentations.
Earlier, on February 29, Kyiv hosted the first round of this international conference, where a wide range of issues related to social protection, medical care, psychological support and economic reintegration of war veterans and their families were raised. The event featured presentations by such well-known American veterans’ rights advocates as: Prince Taylor, former military officer, author of many programs for veterans’ adaptation, Bonnie Carroll, President and Founder of TAPS, Andre Hollis, Head of Tiger International Advisors, former employee of the US Department of Defense, Nathan White-Wilson, Head of Gallant Knights Private Security Services, etc.
