The Ministry of National Defense should speed up an evaluation of whether mandatory military service needs to be extended, a military expert said yesterday.
Retired army major general Richard Hu (胡瑞舟) made the comment after Deputy Minister of National Defense Bo Hong-hui (柏鴻輝) on Friday said that an assessment should take no more than one year.
China has been a continual threat, and the ministry and other national security agencies have been assessing the situation for years, so it should not take more than a couple of months to reassess what the nation needs, Hu said.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
Before the government makes an announcement on the service length, the Military Service Act (兵役法) stipulates that the defense ministry and the Ministry of the Interior must first assess troop capacity and recruitment sources, submit a proposal to the Executive Yuan for approval, and then send the approval to the Legislative Yuan as notice, Hu said.
If the service length is to be extended, it would not be implemented before 2024, as the act also stipulates that change can only “take effect one year after an announcement,” he added.
An assessment should not take that long, said Hu, who is also a researcher at the Taiwan Center for Security Studies, adding that the government should amend the act to shorten the assessment time before making any changes to conscription.
Kuo Yu-jen (郭育仁), a professor at National Sun Yat-sen University’s Institute of China and Asia-Pacific Studies, said that having a good plan before acting is more important.
Without sufficient planning, conscripted young people would have nothing to do if their military service was extended, he said.
Institute for National Defense and Security Research analyst Shu Hsiao-huang (舒孝煌) said that even if the service period was extended to a year, it would not be long enough for them to learn to skillfully operate precision-guided equipment — they could only serve as infantry soldiers.
The military would need to make appropriate adjustments to training camps and programs, he said, adding that bolstering combat capability is the most important.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政) said that any change to the length of the service period would affect people’s rights, so it is not something “that can be announced today and implemented tomorrow.”
The decision might even cause people to rush to fulfill their mandatory service, which is currently four months, before an extension could take effect, he said.
The government must give people time to prepare, as young people have career plans, he said.
If the service length is extended to one year, it might also affect the labor market, so thorough planning is needed, he added.
PROCEDURE: Although there is already a cross-strait agreement in place for the extradition of criminals, ample notice is meant to be given to the other side first Ten Taiwanese who were involved in fraud-related crimes in China were extradited back to Taiwan via Kinmen County on Wednesday, four of whom are convicted fraudsters in Taiwan. The 10 people arrived via a ferry operating between Xiamen and Kinmen, also known as the “small three links.” The Kinmen County Prosecutors’ Office yesterday said that four of the 10 extradited people were convicted in Taiwan for committing fraud and contravening the Money Laundering Control Act (洗錢防制法), and were on the wanted list. They were immediately arrested upon arrival and sent to Kinmen Prison to serve their sentences following brief questioning, the office said.
Taipei and Kaohsiung have extended an open invitation to Japanese pop star Ayumi Hamasaki after Chinese authorities abruptly canceled her scheduled concert in Shanghai. Hamasaki, 47, had been slated to perform on Saturday before organizers pulled the show at the last minute, citing “force majeure,” a move widely viewed as retaliation for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s recent remark that a Chinese attack on Taiwan could draw a military response from Tokyo. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) yesterday said the city “very much welcomes” Hamasaki’s return and would continue to “surprise” her. Hamasaki, who has a large global fan base, including
‘REGRETTABLE’: Travelers reported that Seoul’s online arrival card system lists Taiwan as ‘China (Taiwan),’ the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday urged South Korea to correct the way Taiwan is listed in its newly launched e-Arrival card system, saying the current designation downgrades the nation’s status. South Korea rolled out the online system on Feb. 24 to gradually replace paper arrival cards, which it plans to phase out by next year. Travelers must complete the electronic form up to 72 hours before entering the country. The ministry said it has received multiple complaints from Taiwanese travelers saying that the system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in dropdown menus for both “place of departure” and “next
VIGILANT: Enterovirus activity remains in the epidemic phase, with the CDC urging caregivers of infected children to be on the lookout for signs of severe illness Influenza activity is rising in neighboring countries, and, with temperatures forecast to drop this week, flu cases are expected to increase in the next two weeks, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. Hospitals reported 87,162 visits for flu-like illnesses between Nov. 23 and Saturday, which remained about the same level as the previous week, but nine deaths and 24 cases with serious flu complications were also confirmed last week, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said. Flu activity reached a peak in late September before declining for eight consecutive weeks, CDC Deputy Director-General and spokesman Lin Min-cheng (林明誠)
RSS