The government has unveiled a preview of proposed amendments to rules governing alternative civilian service to bolster the civil defense system.
The Executive Yuan in December 2022 incorporated demobilized alternative civilian service members into the civil defense program by allowing the government to recall men demobilized within the previous eight years to train one day per year.
The amendments would authorize the government to recall former civilian service members to train or serve for longer periods and more often than regulations initially stipulated, the Ministry of the Interior said in a notice posted earlier in the week.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
The government may invoke this power to deal with extreme weather events, geopolitical tensions, natural disasters or to support military operations, the ministry said.
The changes would allow officials to recall former civilian service members dismissed between one and nine years earlier to train in civil defense-related tasks and capabilities, it said.
The proposed regulations require central and local government agencies to request the recall of former civil service members 10 days ahead of time, from the 20 days previously stipulated, the ministry said.
The amendments would also enable the government to call up 50 percent of the total number of civilian service reservists, up from the current 20 percent limit, it said.
The five-day limit on the term of service is to be abolished, it said.
Summonses to serve must reach civilian service members two days before the targeted training event, it said.
Injured or ill service members or those in bereavement, certain family emergencies, or subject to a force or circumstance beyond their control would be exempt from the summons, the ministry said.
The government aims to draft 13,650 men into civilian alternative service this year, an official speaking on condition of anonymity said yesterday.
The government would from next month start accepting applications for would-be military conscripts to apply for alternative service, they said.
The government had hoped to recall 72,000 former civilian alternative service personnel to train in national emergency response this year, but the target was reduced to 50,000 following budget cuts, the source said.
The government last year recalled 50,052 dismissed civilian service members to train for national emergency response, they added.
The government would recall 120 active and reserve civilian service members to participate in the nation’s first Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Field Exercise in Tainan on Thursday, the official said.
INVESTIGATION: The case is the latest instance of a DPP figure being implicated in an espionage network accused of allegedly leaking information to Chinese intelligence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member Ho Jen-chieh (何仁傑) was detained and held incommunicado yesterday on suspicion of spying for China during his tenure as assistant to then-minister of foreign affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮). The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said Ho was implicated during its investigation into alleged spying activities by former Presidential Office consultant Wu Shang-yu (吳尚雨). Prosecutors said there is reason to believe Ho breached the National Security Act (國家安全法) by leaking classified Ministry of Foreign Affairs information to Chinese intelligence. Following interrogation, prosecutors petitioned the Taipei District Court to detain Ho, citing concerns over potential collusion or tampering of evidence. The
‘FORM OF PROTEST’: The German Institute Taipei said it was ‘shocked’ to see Nazi symbolism used in connection with political aims as it condemned the incident Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 yesterday amid an outcry over a Nazi armband he wore to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case on Tuesday night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and apparently covering the book with a coat. This is a serious international scandal and Chinese
Seventy percent of middle and elementary schools now conduct English classes entirely in English, the Ministry of Education said, as it encourages schools nationwide to adopt this practice Minister of Education (MOE) Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) is scheduled to present a report on the government’s bilingual education policy to the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee today. The report would outline strategies aimed at expanding access to education, reducing regional disparities and improving talent cultivation. Implementation of bilingual education policies has varied across local governments, occasionally drawing public criticism. For example, some schools have required teachers of non-English subjects to pass English proficiency
TRADE: The premier pledged safeguards on ‘Made in Taiwan’ labeling, anti-dumping measures and stricter export controls to strengthen its position in trade talks Products labeled “made in Taiwan” must be genuinely made in Taiwan, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday, vowing to enforce strict safeguards against “origin laundering” and initiate anti-dumping investigations to prevent China dumping its products in Taiwan. Cho made the remarks in a discussion session with representatives from industries in Kaohsiung. In response to the US government’s recent announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on its trading partners, President William Lai (賴清德) and Cho last week began a series of consultations with industry leaders nationwide to gather feedback and address concerns. Taiwanese and US officials held a videoconference on Friday evening to discuss the