Most of the Taiwanese public favors a return to compulsory military service, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said yesterday, citing a recent opinion poll conducted by the Academia Sinica.
In response, Ministry of National Defense officials said the transformation to an all-volunteer military cannot be reversed.
Hsiao discussed the poll results yesterday at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee in Taipei.
She said the poll showed majority support in every age group for returning to the compulsory military service system to bolster military strength.
“Now the military has the problem of too many commanding officers and too few soldiers. According to the government’s current fiscal constraints and staff planning, it is not possible to convert to an all-volunteer military,” she said.
“The defense ministry must face this issue in earnest to assess and manage the risks involved. Government officials must not let the current problem slide in trying to fulfill an untenable target,” she added.
In response, Deputy Minister of National Defense Admiral Chen Yung-kang (陳永康) said: “The all-volunteer enlistment program is already under way. We cannot reverse the process.”
The survey, carried out by researchers during a workshop on China’s impact presented by the Academia Sinica’s Institute of Sociology in January and February, asked participants: “Do you agree that Taiwan must maintain compulsory military service system to enhance its military strength?”
According to the survey, 50 to 60 percent of respondents in all age groups answered in favor, with the highest proportion being in the 30-to-39 age group at 70 percent.
Observers said the survey indicated the public’s concern with the numerous corruption and morale scandals besieging the armed forces, as well as declining combat capabilities to defend the nation in the face of growing Chinese military power.
Some officials speculated that Hsiao was testing the waters for DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on the issue, since Hsiao is among Tsai’s inner circle of advisers.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) said the issues raised are very important, and that the defense ministry should assess the situation and verify the numbers cited by the survey.
Separately yesterday, Chen Wen-cheng (陳文政), convener for the national defense policy group at the New Frontier Foundation, a DPP think tank, said the all-volunteer program would be reassessed if the DPP wins next year’s elections.
“We see the current government’s military downsizing program as being pushed ahead without proper planning, which has led to low morale and other problems among middle-rank officers and soldiers,” Chen said.
“Therefore, the DPP would support a temporary halt to the downsizing process. The current all-volunteer military initiative by the ministry is the most egregious example of a politician making ill-advised promises and trying to implement flawed policies after election,” he said, likely referring to President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
Conscription remains in place for all eligible able-bodied male citizens over the age of 18 for mandatory military service.
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