Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) yesterday said that if the Republic of China (ROC) military shifts to an all-volunteer force, there would be a shortfall of 20,000 soldiers by the end of next year, confirming the need to continue conscription for men born before Dec. 31, 1993.
Lin said the current personnel quota is 215,000. Deducting non-established personnel — such as those still in training and students in elementary military schools — leaves the established personnel quota at 196,000.
Considering the ratio of existing personnel to “established” personnel should be 87 percent to 90 percent, Lin said the ROC military force during peacetime should number at least 170,000 to 175,000 personnel.
“The number of the voluntary force, according to the Ministry of National Defense’s estimates, would be about 149,000 by the end of next year, which is 20,000 to 27,000 short,” Lin said. “So the government next year has no choice but to continue enlisting those born before 1993.”
Lin said that although the decision is set to impact some young Taiwanese and their families, their career plans might not be affected as strongly as imagined, since those born before Jan. 1, 1994 are still required to serve alternative civilian service for one year if not conscripted.
The KMT lawmaker also panned Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) national defense policies, saying that other than “copying those measures already undertaken by the KMT,” the rest of her policies are empty.
Lin said Tsai should explain what she and the DPP would do if she gets elected next year and there is still a shortfall of 20,000 soldiers.
KMT presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) said the government has put effort into shifting to an all-volunteer force, “but there are obstacles in the process, we should review the process [and see what needs improvement].”
“However, the idea of constructing a smaller and better military should still be the goal. We do not want wars, and the most fundamental solution is cross-strait peace,” Hung said. “If there is no possibility of war happening across the Taiwan Strait, many problems would be solved more smoothly.”
Separately, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said the government’s promise to shift to an all-volunteer military system is a policy that has just been implemented and there are still many benefit-guaranteeing measures that have not been passed.
Wang said that a draft bill of provisional regulations on volunteer military service was scheduled to clear the Legislative Yuan in the last session, but failed to do so.
He said he hopes the bill can be passed as soon as possible to ensure institutional benefits for volunteer soldiers.
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