Memorandum to the Minister of Public Order Mr. M. Chrysochoidis regarding the admission requirements to the Hellenic Police Academies.

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Anna KARAMANOU Member of the European Parliament Chairwoman of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality

Dear Minister,

With this letter, I am returning to the issue of admission requirements for the police academies, which I have raised in the past. After the abolition of quotas for admission to the police academies with the passing of Law 3103/03, I had believed that the issue had been resolved. However, with the recent and quite sudden announcement from your Ministry regarding the admission of civilians to the police academies, I regret to observe that discrimination against women remains, and that new, indirect methods are now being used to exclude them from the Police Force.

Specifically, the equalization of the height requirement for both genders and its establishment at 1.70 meters constitutes an obvious discrimination against women, as very few Greek women exceed this height. At the same time, for admission to the schools of other security forces and the military, the height requirements are not only different for men and women, but also absolutely logical according to Greek standards. For example, the military academies set the height requirement for men at 1.65 meters and for women at 1.55 meters.

Similarly, the establishment of common performance standards in sports can only be detrimental to women. In every athletic trial, according to international and Greek practice, the biological differences of women are taken into account. It will be extremely difficult for women to outperform their male counterparts, which will condemn them to unfair exclusion. The absurdity of the tests in the events has reached the point where the shot put weight is set at 7.275 kg, while according to IAAF regulations, the standard shot put weight for all athletes worldwide is 4 kg. Even to lift the 7 kg weight, or to fit it in one’s palm, a person would need to have a hand large enough, which is not the case for most women.

As you know, since February, students who wish to be admitted to the Police Academies have been required to declare their preferences after first selecting the relevant courses in their field of study. Practically, this means that these students have begun a lengthy, if not multi-year, effort to achieve their goal, an effort that involves not only intensive studying but also physical preparation. Suddenly, in mid-April, this announcement comes unexpectedly to overturn all the hard work of the students and their families, changing the admission criteria and setting new ones that are illogical and will inevitably lead to the exclusion of most female candidates, violating the principle of equality, which is protected by Articles 4 and 116 of the Constitution.

The appearance of equal treatment provided by the establishment of common requirements cannot cover up the discrimination arising from the disregard for the biological differences between women and men. Women and men are equal, but they are not the same, as they differ in their biological characteristics. It is obvious and in line with common sense and experience that the disregard for these differences essentially constitutes discrimination against women.

Dear Minister,

Greece’s alignment with community legislation, specifically Directive 76/207, was a prudent decision made shortly before Greece was dragged to the European Court of Justice and suffered international embarrassment. It is certain that the discrimination against female candidates for the police academies will provoke their reaction and a new marathon of lawsuits will begin, which will cause distress to both parties. I therefore ask you to reconsider these new admission criteria to the Police Academies, possibly reinstating the criteria that were in place until last year, in order to ensure equal opportunities for boys and girls who wish to join the Police Force.

With deep respect,

Anna Karamanou