Irish soldiers, sailors and airmen, along with their European counterparts, are being treated as second-class citizens under working time legislation, it was claimed at the general assembly of the European Organisation of Military Associations (Euromil) in Ennis, Co Clare, at the weekend. The claim regarding Army personnel, however, was rejected by the Chief-of-Staff, Lieut Gen Gerry McMahon.
"The practice whereby national governments in some instances are using the ambiguous wording of European Union directives to totally exclude military personnel from the basic rights afforded to European citizens must cease", said Mr John Lucey, PDFORRA representative on Euromil's executive committee.
He told the 100 delegates that the recent working time legislation, for example, excludes the military personnel of many countries because of their governments' narrow interpretation of EU directives.
The European directive on working time provides for a maximum 48-hour week averaged over a year, and 20 days' paid annual leave for all European citizens.
Mr Lucey continued: "Euromil accepts that some exemptions may be necessary because of the nature of the military profession. These exemptions should be agreed in consultations and negotiations with national representative associations. "General exclusions are not acceptable to Euromil. The soldier is a citizen in uniform and must be considered equally with his or her European fellow citizens."
The Chief-of-Staff, Lieut Gen McMahon, said later that soldiers cannot be tied to a given number of working hours a day; there had to be flexibility. "The current situation is that they work a certain amount of time under normal everyday duties and are paid allowances for additional duties," he said.
The Chief-of-Staff added that PDFORRA had negotiating rights on the size of the allowances. Euromil, which is celebrating its silver jubilee this month, has opened an office in Brussels with a full-time secretariat to co-ordinate a political lobby of European institutions "to protect the social conditions" of military personnel.
The conference congratulated political parties in Ireland and the UK for their perseverance in seeking a resolution to the conflict in Northern Ireland.
The president of Euromil, Mr Jens Rotboll, said that his organisation had pioneered peace and reconciliation throughout Europe since its foundation in 1972. Its track record in encouraging co-operation between soldiers from opposing sides of both the second World War and the Cold War "demonstrates our commitment to peace".
Long before the ending of the Cold War, Euormil's affiliate organisations were exchanging information and meeting with military personnel from many countries. Those exchanges led to a greater understanding and acceptance of their many diverse cultures. Bitterness and antagonism between former enemies had been overcome through patience and concerted effort, he said.
All European governments were urged by Euromil to appoint an ombudsman to consider military and civilian complaints.