The number of volunteer enlisted soldiers determined unfit for active duty reached 4,066 last year, a record high, a Ministry of National Defense report showed.
Starting next year, Taiwan is to restore compulsory military service to one year for men who were born in 2005 or later, and who are aged 18 or older.
However, as many young men go to college or university after graduating from high school, the ministry expects there to only be about 9,100 draftees serving the one-year compulsory military service next year, reaching about 35,000 draftees in 2027.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
However, the main force to defend the nation’s land, waters and airspace would be volunteer enlisted soldiers, it said.
According to the Act of Military Service for Volunteer Enlisted Soldiers (志願士兵服役條例), military service for volunteer enlisted soldiers cannot be less than four years, but the act was amended in 2009 to allow unsuitable volunteer enlisted soldiers the option of early release after three months of service, with a requirement to pay compensation.
About 20 percent of volunteer soldiers enlisted in the past five years paid the compensation to be released early, the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee said after last year’s review of the defense ministry’s budget.
The military’s limited training resources are being wasted, it said, adding that compensation-related issues is also a burden on the Ministry of Defense.
The committee made a resolution requiring the ministry to file a report on the analysis of the reasons volunteer enlisted soldiers were determined unfit for active duty, and its improvement methods.
There were 4,066 soldiers unfit for active duty last year, including 3,756 — 92.4 percent — who applied for early release, and 310 — 7.6 percent — who were expelled for receiving three major demerits or two major demerits and an annual performance grade of “C” or below within a year, a ministry report said.
When soldiers were asked why they applied for early release, 43.2 percent said they “have different career plans,” 35.2 percent said they “suffered from maladaptation,” 16 percent said it was due to “family reasons” and 3.6 percent said they had “physical problems or illnesses,” the report said.
The 1,322 soldiers who “suffered from maladaptation” included 766 who “could not adapt to military life,” 156 who “could not agree with troop management” and 137 who “could not agree with military culture,” it said.
Of the 310 soldiers expelled from military service, 22.6 percent had experienced traffic accidents outside the military camp, 21 percent had engaged in drunk driving, 16.5 percent had engaged in gambling and 11 percent had engaged in misconduct outside the military camp, the report said.
The report said the ministry would continue to enhance its new recruit orientation program, analyze the pros and cons of careers within the military and in the private sector, avoid imposing excessive limitations or giving sudden duties that could affect soldiers’ holiday plans, and present a military career vision for volunteer enlisted soldiers, while training them with professional skills.
With the low birthrate and increased salaries for conscripted soldiers, the army must adjust its overall labor planning, replace old equipment and develop military automation systems, Institute for National Defense and Security Research analyst Shu Hsiao-huang (舒孝煌) said.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
RSS