In 2020, a female soldier with long blond hair and always love to wear big red lipstick, Anna Hrramzova, was expelled from the army. A year ago, she had just won the National Guard Pageant.
To express her displeasure, Hratsova decided to expose to the media the terrible "atmosphere of comparison" within the army, insisting that the reason for the army's dismissal was because other female colleagues were jealous of her beauty, so she was ostracized.
Anna Hrramzova Image source: east2west news
After seeing this news, netizens outside Russia have focused on another thing: in Russia, the military will hold beauty contests?
Yes, this activity dates back to 2003 and has now penetrated most units of the Russian army and the police system everywhere. It can be said that the military and police beauty pageants have even become a Russian feature.
Why do the heroes who defend their families and defend the country have to compare with the United States? Do female soldiers prefer military uniforms or more red clothes? Nowadays, why are more and more people coming out against this activity?
Behind the military beauty pageant reflects the deep-rooted gender perception within the Russian military and hidden concerns about its future development.
On June 21, 2005, the Army Theater in Moscow, the capital of Russia, came to life. In this huge Stalinist building, 19 tall, good-looking female officers and soldiers are competing in the "Epaulette Beauty" beauty pageant to compete for the title of "Miss Russian Army".
This is the second time that the Russian military has held an army beauty pageant (the first time in 2003), and it is also the most powerful one, which not only received a lot of media attention, but also broadcast live on television.
Women in the Russian military and police system Image source: Network
Before the start of the competition, the participating female officers and soldiers were very nervous backstage, and from time to time they were tidying up their green military skirts and makeup and hair that were not up to their knees. The curtain opened, the lights came on, and the beauties quickly changed into the standard smile of "showing 8 teeth" and walked generously and confidently.
Obviously, the audience was fascinated by their elegant manners and long legs, and the atmosphere in the venue was full of restlessness.
In addition to the steps, 19 female officers and soldiers also performed patriotic songs, one of which was quite interesting: "We are soldiers, the first consideration is weapons, and boys are secondary." ”
Why did the army that defended the country suddenly hold a beauty pageant? The female officers and soldiers who entered the final gave the answer.
Ana Benkina, a 22-year-old lieutenant in the Railway Corps, told the media that becoming a "Miss Russian Army" was not the main target for the 19 girls.
"Our ultimate goal is to help the military recruit and tell men of school age not to be afraid to enter the military. Thanks to this pageant, people see that even girls can do well in the military. Benqina said. Before the finals, the contestants also participated in military exercises, creeping forward, running with weapons and other projects.
Female soldiers also have to undergo physical and technical tests Source: Network
Gennadi Yyuba, then spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry and organizer of the 2005 "Epaulette Beauty" beauty contest, believes that the event showed the public the positive and soft side of the Russian military. He also firmly believes that few men can resist not joining the army after watching the pageant.
"Previously, when the participating girls came to the Moscow newspaper for an interview, many boys came to watch, and even climbed the wall just to see their faces. The boys shouted to each other, 'I'm going to join the army'. Zyuba proudly told the media.
In 2005, such a tone did not cause any public opinion storm, seeing that the "epaulette beauty" worked well, and the Russian Black Sea Fleet, missile forces and local police stations also held their own beauty contests.
As a result, the military and police organs held beauty pageants, which has become a "tradition" rare in other regions and with Russian characteristics.
The reason for the painstaking efforts to attract new recruits is mainly due to the shortage of Russian soldiers. In the first decade of the 21st century, the level of staffing in the military was even only about 70%.
The Russian army cannot recruit people for multiple reasons.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Government of the Russian Federation took over the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union in its territory, and the Russian Army was formally established, but compared with before, the funds were not the same, and the treatment of soldiers plummeted.
At the end of the last century and the beginning of this century, the two Chechen wars caused countless soldiers to die, increasing the risk of enlistment.
In January 2000, two Russian military personnel talked in the Chechen region Photo source: noor
In addition, the endless violence and bullying incidents have also deterred many young men of the right age in the face of military barracks.
According to the international center for strategic and research reports, in 2006 alone, the Russian military received 292 deaths related to bullying and violence.
In the same year, Russian newspapers also exposed several military scandals. In one case, a recruit was maimed by a beating and had to amputate his legs and cut off his genitals. In another case, another recruit was treated similarly and eventually had part of his intestine removed to save his life.
What is even more heinous is that in some military regions, in order to earn extra money, some commanders will force recruits into prostitution. Liupov Yezeleva of the non-profit organization "Soldier Mothers Union" once told the story of soldier Paul (pseudonym) to the media.
"Paul, from Siberia, was beaten by his superiors while serving in St. Petersburg. After subduing Paul, the governor gave him a phone call and asked him to connect with the 'customers' himself and negotiate the price of the service. After the service was completed, Paul had to hand over the money to the governor. Yezeleva admits that for adult men, it takes a lot of courage to encounter and speak out about this experience.
Image source: Network
As a result of the ongoing scandals in the military, the children of wealthy families choose to be exempted from military service by paying bribes, and only the children of poor families or those who are in poor health enter the army.
Russian Air Force Commander Vladimir Mikhailov complained that 30 percent of the recruits who joined the Air Force that year were "mentally unstable," 10 percent had alcohol problems, and 15 percent were in poor health or malnourished.
Seeing these data, and then thinking back to the beauty pageant's beauty to advise young men of the right age to "not be afraid to enter the army", it gave birth to a strange feeling.
Some netizens believe that this is as if female soldiers can make up for the negative events that may be encountered in the military, which makes people think.
According to the accounts of contestants and officials, the idea that beauty pageants help recruits is based on two main logics: first, to attract young men with beauty; second, to imply that women can complete military tasks, and men must be able to do it.
In today's increasingly strong sense of equal rights for men and women, the above logic is particularly harsh, so the voice of opposition to military beauty pageants is also getting higher and higher.
Taking advantage of this wave of condemnation, the limited status and function of female soldiers in the military have also been brought to the open for discussion by public opinion.
In fact, from the all-female death squad led by Maria Pokaleva during the Russian Revolution in 1917 to the Soviet Union's 588th Night Bomber Squadron, known to the Nazis as the "Witch of the Night Raiders" during World War II. Heroes have long been a hot topic among the Russian population.
On May 9, 2019, commemorating the 74th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War, the Russian women's phalanx appeared at the parade on Red Square Image source: Network
But now, the status of female soldiers does not seem to be as prominent as before.
On the one hand, the proportion of female soldiers in the Russian army is low worldwide. In May 2020, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu pointed out that the number of active female soldiers in the Russian military is about 41,000, or about 4.26% – less than half of most Western countries.
On the other hand, there are only a few positions that Russian female soldiers can hold. In this regard, the Russian official explained that this is mainly to take into account the physical and psychological differences between men and women.
For example, according to military psychologist Yevgeny Zoffnetchuck, women are better suited for positions such as operators of communication centers or army nurses because "women are more meticulous and focused than men, and therefore better at coping with monotonous, simple, and repetitive work."
The views of Vladimir Komodov, former chairman of the National Defense Committee of the State Duma and former commander of the Black Sea Fleet, are also representative.
He once said, "Women are certainly worthy of trust, they can be translators, military singers, radio operators... But you don't have to put them on tanks or fighter jets, and women fit into positions that are too easy for men. ”
According to a Report by TASS in July 2020, a woman named Yana Sugaeva was denied an application to join the army, with the letter clearly stating, "Women are not allowed to join the army as drivers, mechanics, snipers or gunners." ”
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In a fit of rage, Sugaeva sued the Ministry of Defence and the National Guard, and after losing the first instance, appealed to the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court. Of course, both ultimately refused to hear the case.
Since the success of the "Epaulette Beauty" beauty contest in 2005, various units of the Russian army and the police system have followed suit.
The airborne corps stationed in Tula has a "Paratrooper Beauty" pageant. During the competition, the female soldiers have to compete with their opponents in the fields of appearance, aesthetics, INTELLIGENCE, morality and spirituality.
The official introduction to the event reads, "The girls also need to participate in the 'Magic Chef' cooking competition. The 'Costume Contest' gave the female soldiers a platform to demonstrate their sewing skills. ”
The missile unit in charge of Russia's nuclear arsenal also has a beauty pageant called "camouflage makeup." Coincidentally, the missile unit's beauty pageant also needs to test the cooking ability of female soldiers, and it is more demanding - they must use the most basic ingredients to make at least three low-calorie meals.
There are also countless beauty pageants in the police system across Russia, and they often have strict age restrictions, that is, contestants must be under the age of 30.
2020, Kursk, a beauty pageant within the police system Image source: Network
However, those who win the beauty pageant championship are not all good.
2019 National Guard pageant champion Anna Hrramzova was expelled from the army a few months after the game.
While officials pointed out that the decision to fire was due to Anna exposing her place of work in a video posted on social media, she insisted that it was due to being ostracized by female colleagues after winning the pageant.
In short, this encounter made a 180-degree turn in Anna's attitude towards the military and police beauty pageants.
"I think this beauty pageant is ridiculous, it nakedly tells the world that even if they take taxpayer money to defend the country, female soldiers who can skillfully use weapons must also be beautiful, and they must prove to others that they can sew and make low-calorie meals." 」
Anna asked the media her question: "Why don't male soldiers hold similar beauty pageants?" ”
However, the official does not seem to have stopped the intention of the military beauty pageant, and various large and small elections are still in full swing.
Although the russian military's staffing level has now reached more than 90%, considering that analysts predict that Russia will usher in a sustained population decline in 2033, the difficulty of recruiting will be a long-term problem.
Mary Chesnut of the nonprofit organization "CNA" suggests that if there is a real desire to address the shortage of military personnel, why not open more positions to women who are capable of taking up the job?
Text | Liu Liuqi