No coed drinking
allowed in
Hickam dorms
The decision comes after a study
connects alcohol to rape cases
In response to a critical study, Air Force enlisted airmen and women under the age of 21 cannot be in the same dormitory room at Hickam Air Force Base when alcohol is present.
The decision by Col. Raymond Torres, commander of Hickam's 15th Airlift Wing, is in response to a three-year study that showed drinking was a factor in about 60 percent of 92 rape cases involving Air Force personnel in the Pacific region.
Airman 1st Class Nelson Rodriguez, who has been in one of Hickam's six dorms since he arrived here last August, said the change will make a difference.
"It's keeping the balance by trying to reduce the problem while at the same time not restricting the actions of older airmen who have to live there.
"It also forces airmen to police other airmen and take responsibility for what occurs in their rooms."
At Hickam, all single personnel from the rank of airman basic to senior airmen with less than three years of service are required to live in the dorms. At Hickam, six dormitories are coed, but men and women do not share sleeping rooms or bathroom facilities. Nearly 700 men and women live in separate wings or floors.
There were a few problems caused by drinking, said Rodriguez, 21.
"It's usually because there would be a gathering outside, and then it would move inside to the dorm rooms."
In March, Gen. William Begret, then commanding general of Pacific Air Forces, responding to the findings of the study, suggested a "dry dorm policy" but left it to the heads of the nine bases under his command.
Only Elemdorf Air Base in Alaska prohibits drinking in its dormitories, said Lt. Col. Steve Clutter, Pacific Air Force spokesman.
On Guam, Air Force officials raised the drinking age to 21 in the tent city housing area at Anderson Air Base.
In South Korea at Osan Air Base, Clutter said, the policy varies according to the requirements of the individual squadron commanders.
Torres, in an Aug. 1 memo, said "alcohol use in our dormitories will only occur within the confines of a dormitory room assigned to an individual that is of legal age to consume alcohol."
He further ordered that if any type of liquor is served in the room, everyone there has to be of the legal drinking age.
"Our goal with this policy is simple," Torres added. "Ensure the safety of our airmen."
Torres said there is a "clear link" between dormitory incidents of assault, damage to government property and underage drinking.
The Air Force's five-month study covered 2001 through 2003 and found that 106 servicemen were accused of rape in 92 cases. Eleven of the rapes took place at Hickam.
