BOGOTA: After 25 years, Colombia has opened doors of its mandatory military service for women this year. A total of 1,296 women enlisted in Colombia’s army in February this year

Zulma Stefania Perez pondered on her life as one of Colombia's first female conscripts in more than 20 years as she discussed her initial weeks of training at a military base in the capital.

“The physical exercises we have to endure are the same” as those for men, she said. “Being women does not make us less capable.” In fact, there are many skills and strengths that men may not have.”Perez, 24, is one of 1,296 women who joined Colombia's military in February, the first time in the country's 25-year history that women were allowed to serve in the armed forces.

Males between the ages of 18 and 24 are required to serve in the military in Colombia. While its professional soldiers fight against drug-trafficking gangs and insurgency organisations, the army heavily relies on those young recruits to maintain bases, safeguard infrastructure, and handle administrative duties.

This year, officials allowed women of the same age to voluntarily join the military, in what the army says is part of an effort to “strengthen the role of women” in its ranks.

Several of the women in the new programme think it will help them start careers in the military, despite the fact that recruits must live on military bases for several months and receive just an around $75 monthly stipend. Many see it as a possibility for secure employment and better educational options.

Despite having a law degree, Perez has had trouble finding employment in the legal field. "I like the lectures we get here on human rights and international humanitarian law because that's my area of expertise," she said. She said that she will probably work for the military's judicial affairs section after completing her basic training.

First, she must undergo three months of basic training, wake up every day at 6 a.m. and be given only one minute to take a cold shower. She also learned to run while carrying a 3-kilogram (6 1/2-pound) rifle. The adjustment to all of this activity was difficult, she claimed. "You have a sedentary existence as a civilian."

Some claimed that they joined the military because law enforcement is a family tradition.

Jariani Alvarez, a 20-year-old recruit from Bogota who has an uncle who works as a police officer, stated that she has always desired to wear this uniform with pride, discipline, and honour.

She claimed that despite the army's ongoing battle to liberate some rural areas of the nation from the grip of drug gangs and rebel organisations, she is not afraid to serve as a soldier in Colombia.

This is risky business, she declared. Yet I believe we can succeed if we understand our drills and adhere to the rules.

The military of Colombia has about 200,000 personnel. Until date, 1% of members were women who joined after completing their studies at military colleges or applying for administrative positions.

The nation of South America enlists about 50,000 males each year for a 12-month mandatory military duty.

The majority of conscripts are men from low-income urban or rural districts, according to human rights advocates and some politicians, who allege that wealthier Colombians who attend private schools find ways to evade the service.

A plan that would abolish required military service and permit young men to substitute internships in educational programmes, environmental projects, or human rights efforts instead is being debated in Colombia's congress at the same time that there is a new drive to allow women to enlist.

Colombian military officials opposed the law because they believed it would weaken the army's capabilities.

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