Michelle Dunne: The Defence Forces is in crisis: It's time to pull out the weeds

The Women of Honour have shown remarkable courage in speaking out — but the Defence Forces must act now and stop resisting change

People who join the Defence Forces need to know they will be awarded the respect they deserve. Picture: Leon Farrell/RollingNews.ie

As a former member of the Irish Defence Forces, I’ve been following the Women of Honour movement over the past few years, and I’ve been in awe of the courage that the women involved have shown.

It’s not easy to speak out against your employer and it’s even more difficult to go up against such a large institution, especially one that is so resistant to change.

We were all raised on the types of war movies that depict a drill sergeant screaming in the faces of recruits, spit flying, and insults being hurled as standard. 

So as a young soldier, when you find yourself standing in the rain on the barrack square, rattling with fear and dread while you wait for your turn, you know that it is to be expected. 

One can argue that this type of gruelling treatment during training is necessary, and I do agree that it has to be tough.

The famous bond between soldiers is forged when they experience tough situations together and come out on the other side.

This is vitally important to any army.

A soldier's bond

Soldiers fight for the person standing alongside them. If that bond isn’t there, then how effective can an army really be?

But the Defence Forces need leaders who are strong enough and secure enough in themselves, to be able to create that environment, while keeping their personal grudges and prejudices to themselves.

They also need to know that if they can’t do that, then they will be the ones having to explain and justify themselves and their actions.

My personal experience was incredibly positive and in a way, I feel it shaped the person I am today.

Those instructors who screamed in my face as a recruit became my trusted colleagues when serving overseas. 

I met bullies too. They were everywhere, but I had a great peer group and I’m lucky to say that no one painted a target on my back for their own satisfaction.

I was very much aware though (we all were) that making waves didn’t do anybody any favours. 

I didn’t feel that that applied to me because I am a woman. It applied to all of us, male or female.

People who did make complaints went on to become cautionary tales. The whole barracks would know who made a complaint against whom, and the tale would be accompanied by multiple versions of, here’s what actually happened. 

Also, the complainant was almost always in the wrong, even if the form of the accused was well known, and as such, the accusation made perfect sense. 

Members of Women of Honour: Honor Murphy, Yvonne O'Rourke, Diane Byrne, and Karina Molloy outside in Government Buildings ahead of a meeting with Tánaiste Micheál Martin in Dublin.

It would be nice to think that it was the old-school way of things. But this report is based on first-hand accounts of both its current and past members, so clearly that’s not the case.

I’m still in touch with so many of my former colleagues, some of whom are still serving, and I’ve talked about this with many of them over the years.

While they all feel differently about the Defence Forces, almost all of them have come across someone who derived pleasure out of their torment at some stage in their career.

Often it was a case of being out-ranked by someone who just didn’t like them.

The report found that soldiers being “young and inexperienced can result in their being targeted by predatory older members who exploit such traits. Women, lower ranks and those who challenge are also at risk.” 

It also found that “notwithstanding the role of the Defence Forces,

neither men nor women working in the Defence Forces are working in a safe working environment”. 

A bully is someone with a very small mind and given some power to wield, they will target anyone who stands out for any reason. 

Something that they might feel unable to do themselves and among the various ranks of the Defence Forces can be the perfect hiding place for those individuals. 

People have been screaming about bullying in the forces forever and those screams have been getting louder and louder. Finally, they are being heard.

Recruitment issue

If the Irish Defence Forces is to raise its numbers to an effective level, then it needs to be known as a career for people who want to find their limits and push past them, with support, encouragement and the kind of camaraderie that won’t be found anywhere else. 

They need to know that they will be awarded the respect that they work so hard for. They need to know that dignity will always be theirs. 

You give a young person all of that, on top of the opportunities that a life in the forces has to offer, and we could have a world-class army, navy, and air corps. 

As it stands, the Defence Forces is in crisis. Now is the time to pull the weeds.

The Women of Honour should be immensely proud of themselves. They shone a bright light on discrimination and abuse against both men and women in the Defence Forces and they forced the whole country to listen.

I strongly believe that their courage will make the forces a safer place for everyone who chooses “A Life Less Ordinary” and ultimately make the Irish Defence Forces strong. Assuming that the Defence Forces chooses to act.

Michelle Dunne served in the army for five years and retired at the rank of Corporal