Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators yesterday criticized a plan to phase out military instructors from schools by 2021, saying that it would increase security risks, while Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers said the role of military instructors is overvalued and abused.
While universities can retire military instructors at their discretion, military instructors at high schools should stay, because their roles in handling bullies, drug abuse and psychological counseling cannot be filled by teachers or security guards, KMT Legislator Lee Yan-hsiu (李彥秀) told a news conference in Taipei.
The Legislative Yuan in 2013 passed a resolution to phase out all military instructors from schools within eight years.
Photo: Chen Yu-fu, Taipei Times
KMT Legislator Ko Chih-en (柯志恩) questioned the need for the phase-out, as universities have hired retired military instructors as security personnel.
“Military instructors are acceptable if they are not in uniform? What kind of logic is that?” Ko asked.
Ko said the removal of military instructors without proper supportive measures would “make parents anxious, while emboldening gangsters and drug dealers.”
KMT Legislator Lu Yu-ling (呂玉玲) said military instructors were assigned to schools during the Martial Law era to collect intelligence, but today there is no need to censor student activities.
There is a rigorous training and evaluation regime for the instructors, who are responsible for military training, campus security and counseling, retired military instructor Chin Su-Hsien (金肅賢) said at the KMT caucus’ news conference.
How would such duties be fulfilled if military instructors are phased out, Chin asked.
DPP Legislator Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said at a meeting of the legislature’s Education and Culture Committee that the education system is “addicted to” military instructors and has abused their services.
Military instructors are schools’ “iPhones,” as they are asked to fill multiple roles and are commonly overworked, she said.
“Military instructors are not all-powerful, but they are perceived as a role that cannot be done without. Undue praise of their functions shows that the education system has failed,” she said.
Schools have become dependent on military instructors because they have shifted too much responsibility to them, DPP Legislator Huang Kuo-shu (黃國書) said.
The Ministry of Education retains a number of military instructors, so it should set an example before asking schools to retire them, Huang said.
Military instructors are recruited either from the military or from a special training program run by the ministry, DPP Legislator Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱) said, asking whether they could be transferred to positions with the Ministry of National Defense.
The defense ministry said the instructors cannot be reassigned to military posts even if they have served in the military.
The education ministry should help the instructors gain promotion to the rank of major to entitle them to a life-time pension and help them seek employment opportunities after retirement, Chung said.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
One of two tropical depressions that formed offshore this morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. It is expected to move in a northwesterly direction as it continues building momentum, possibly intensifying into Typhoon Mitag this weekend, she added. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is expected to approach southeast of Taiwan on Monday and pass through the Bashi Channel between Tuesday and Wednesday,
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's