On June 19, President William Lai (賴清德) announced the establishment of the Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee (全社會防衛韌性委員會) at the Presidential Office.
This initiative originates from Lai’s policy of integrating civil and national defense to strengthen Taiwan’s social resilience to natural disasters and growing military threats from China. Although some have criticized the committee as unnecessary symbolism, it can play a proactive role in Taiwan’s civil-military relations.
National and civil defenses are crucial to enhance deterrence against a Chinese invasion. However, a divergence remains between the military and civil society.
The authoritarian era made the military an isolated community detached from Taiwanese society. During the White Terror era, the military was an essential tool for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to defend its autocratic regime. During 38 years of martial law, more than 20,000 people were imprisoned and 5,000 executed, resulting in widespread distrust toward the government and the military.
Democratization ultimately led to the nationalization of the military and imposed restrictions on its law enforcement and judicial powers. However, the military did not become more open as a result.
Bureaucrats in the Ministry of National Defense still frequently cite “lack of professionalism” or “national security concerns” to refuse engagement with civil society.
In the case of army corporal Hung Chung-chiu’s (洪仲丘) death in 2013, the ministry’s passive attitude and evasive response to concerns over military abuse sparked significant pushback from society. Taiwanese men’s experience of compulsory military service — characterized by poor, outdated training and being a waste of time — also contributes to public distrust of the ministry.
Despite military service being one of the least popular career options, many Taiwanese cherish their democracy and freedom, and see civil defense as an alternative way to contribute to defense, such as by participating in training and workshops held by civil defense non-governmental organizations (NGOs) like the Kuma Academy.
However, the lack of interaction between the ministry and civil defense NGOs leads to distrust, which hinders cooperation.
Former minister of national defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) once described the Kuma Academy as a guerrilla group training with paintballs. However, the Kuma Academy has never provided shooting training.
The National Pension Reform Committee, established in 2016, provides a model for promoting social consensus. The new defense resilience committee should learn from the experience by inviting representatives from the government, military and civil society.
The Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee can become a platform of diverse perspectives and provide a comprehensive proposal for security strategy rather than a tool for expanding presidential power, as a pro-China former KMT legislator wrongly claimed.
By bringing fresh knowledge and ideas into defense policy-making, Taiwan can accelerate its transition to asymmetric defense and strengthen deterrence against China’s aggression.
Integrating civil and national defense would also enhance Taiwan’s resilience and allow every Taiwanese to play a role in securing peace in the Taiwan Strait.
Calvin Chu is a research associate at the Taiwan Democratic Progressive Party Mission in the US. He worked for the civil defense non-governmental organization Forward Alliance. The opinions expressed here are solely his own and do not express the views or opinions of his employer.
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