The news is awash with stories of regional tensions, with the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducting military drills targeted at taking the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea, the regular passage of US Navy vessels through the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, China passing new national security legislation throwing Hong Kong into turmoil and the COVID-19 pandemic sending the global economy into a tailspin, among others.
Meanwhile, Taiwan is dealing with incidents related to military discipline that have led to concerns over the preparedness of the military.
In her inaugural address, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on May 20 mentioned the importance of education and training within the military, and how her administration would focus on ensuring that leaders “foster a modern management system that emphasizes professionalism” so that the military would regain the respect of Taiwanese.
In terms of military education and training, it is no small matter.
The military has tended to gloss over the importance of education. Senior leaders at military academies generally only have their experience in the ranks to recommend them, with only a scant few having done any academic research or published any papers on military matters throughout their careers in the armed forces. The majority are strangers to academia.
If the leaders within the hallowed halls of military academies have precious little academic background, there are bound to be problems with leadership principles and capability.
This is different in Japan. The president of Japan’s National Defense Academy has a doctorate under his belt. As a professor, he is suitable to head an academic institution. If Japan can do this, surely Taiwan can do it, too.
Another issue is the deeply subjective decisionmaking on which promotions within the armed forces are frequently based. Military personnel are often promoted for who they are rather than for what they can do, and this leads to resentment and low morale within the military.
An officer with more than 20 years of service experience said that many personnel decisions were based on subjective factors, with legal requirements playing but a token role.
This causes military personnel to lose incentive and motivation, and it of course adversely affects their work attitude. However, this is not merely a loss for individuals, it is a loss for the armed forces as a whole.
The military is facing more scrutiny and higher expectations than it used to, and in a rapidly changing environment, it is important that it is seen to be fit for purpose. This is the only way that the military is going to be able to win back public trust.
The military is only able to make improvements if it manages to reform the way education and training of its leadership is conducted.
Education and training are going to be important sources of military capability in future conflicts, and personnel must be the backbone of this. Given the rapid expansion of the PLA’s might, it is of major importance that Taiwan’s military keeps pace.
Chang Yan-ting is an adjunct professor at National Defense University.
Translated by Paul Cooper
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