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.
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