Trudeau invited to entrust Defense to a woman

The Prime Minister Justin trudeau is urged by several experts to appoint a new defense minister when he forms his next council of ministers.

Voices are rising to say that outgoing Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan, re-elected in the constituency of Vancouver South, has lost credibility in handling the internal crisis within the Canadian Armed Forces caused by allegations of sexual misconduct by former senior military officials.

“It’s just not imaginable,” says director of the Center for Social Innovation and Community Engagement in Military Affairs at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Maya Eichler, of a return of Mr. Sajjan who has held the post since 2015.

“It would show that the government is completely ignoring what people think and refusing to take the necessary bold action. “

Some believe that if it is time to hand over the reins of this ministry to a woman again, it will also be necessary to find a competent person who will have the support necessary to succeed in this function.

“It’s crucial to make sure that the chosen person is prepared for success, not failure,” says Ms. Eichler. While the symbolism of seeing a woman in the post of Minister of National Defense is important, not just any MP will be able to do the job. “

The person who will be appointed will not only have to promote a new culture within the army, but will also have to know how to manage many other files of a ministry well.

In particular, it will be necessary to juggle the various interventions on the planet, the planned purchase of new equipment and the upheavals within the command.

“Naming a woman could be a good idea, because it will bring new perspectives to the ministry,” says Charlotte Duval-Lantoine of the Canadian Institute of World Affairs. However, tying his appointment to the current crisis will undermine his skills. She will be blamed if the military struggles with the culture change. It will be used to justify that no woman can be defense minister for the next 30 years. “

Kim Campbell is the only woman to have served as Minister of National Defense in the country’s history. She served in the Progressive Conservative government of Brian Mulroney for six months in 1993 before briefly serving as Prime Minister.

Megan MacKenzie, Simons Chair in International Law and Human Security at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, recalls that Ms. Campbell had been placed in a difficult situation following the failure of the Lake Accord Meech.

“Women are often called upon to take on a leadership role after another man has failed so miserably. They often have an insurmountable side with them, she says. And what happens next is that the failures are blamed on a woman, when she was not up to the role. This is exactly what happened with Kim Campbell. She had been placed in an impossible position. “

Of the 30 NATO member countries, seven have a woman as defense minister, including Germany and France. However, the German experiment could come to an end, depending on the results of the parliamentary elections in that country.

Among the names circulating for this position in Justin Trudeau’s next Liberal government are those of Carla Qualtrough, the former Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Inclusion. Persons with Disabilities and Anita Anand, the former Minister of Public Services and Procurement.

“We need a Minister of National Defense who is ready to make decisions that may not be appreciated within the Department of National Defense and the Canadian Armed Forces,” said Ms. Duval-Lantoine. If Ms. Qualtrough and Ms. Anand have shown that kind of leadership, then yes. But it should be because they are competent, not just because they are women. “

Watch video



Reference-feedproxy.google.com

Leave a Comment