On Wednesday last week, a mixed artillery battalion of the Republic of China Army Penghu Defense Command conducted a maintenance firing of its 105mm howitzers. This must be done from time to time to ensure that the weapons are kept in full working order and maintain the defense capabilities of the army units stationed on the outlying islands. During the exercise, the presence of a seven-member all-female artillery squad attracted a lot of attention from the local media and other quarters.
The past few years have seen a rising awareness of gender equality. This, along with non-stop upgrading of military technology and the government policy of shifting to an all-voluntary service, has led to an increasing number of talented women joining the ranks of the nation’s armed forces, where, from senior offices in the Ministry of National Defense to basic military units, they shoulder the task of defending their home nation.
This year the total number of women serving in the nation’s armed forces has passed the 20,000 mark and they now make up nearly 14 percent of all voluntary military service personnel.
Compared with advanced democracies, there is still considerable room for increasing the scale of women’s service in Taiwan’s military.
France, for example, has about 203,000 military personnel, which is about 12,000 fewer than Taiwan, but the total number of women in the French armed forces is about 31,000, accounting for 15.5 percent of all enlisted personnel. As such, among the world’s armed forces, France has one of the highest proportions of serving women.
In Taiwan, apart from the navy’s submarine squadron, which is not yet in a position to accept women, the army, navy and air force started accepting women a long time ago. Women serve in combat units as well as combat support units in all three forces. There are women serving as frogmen, gunners, snipers, and platoon and company commanders. In the air force, female pilots fly Mirage 2000 fighter jets.
Whatever their role, they demonstrate the outstanding abilities of Taiwanese women and prove that they are capable of doing all kinds of specialist military jobs.
According to the ranking system of the US armed forces, the rank of five-star general or admiral can only be bestowed in wartime; otherwise, four stars is the maximum. In May 2016, US Air Force General Lori Robinson was appointed commander of the US Northern Command, making her the first-ever female commander of a US unified combat command.
These facts prove that any female officer who puts in an excellent performance can be assigned to important leading roles in the armed forces.
Of the nearly 300 serving generals and admirals in Taiwan, only two are women, both of whom are major generals.
As time goes by, the defense ministry should do some research on the promotion system for female personnel and the retention rate for women in the armed forces, as well as their physical environment, living conditions and welfare.
If the ministry can work out ways to improve and strengthen these factors, there will still be room for increasing the number of women in the armed forces.
When that day comes, Taiwan’s military women will surely continue to demonstrate their expertise and ability, making our armed forces an object of admiration all around the world.
Yao Chung-yuan is a former deputy director of the Ministry of National Defense’s Strategic Planning Department.
Translated by Julian Clegg
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