Government could limit years of draft deferment
ROC Central News Agency
2011/08/26 19:33:25
By Angela Tsai and Christie Chen
Taipei, Aug. 26 (CNA) The National Conscription Agency (NCA) under the Ministry of the Interior plans to hold a meeting to review Taiwan's military service regulations, including the number of years men in the country can postpone their military draft.
Lee Jong-jing, deputy director-general of the NCA, said his agency will convene a meeting and invite officials from the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Education to discuss ways to improve military service regulations so that they are more fair.
When asked what the NCA's response is to a Taiwanese celebrity who stirred controversy by postponing his service for 11 years through attending five different colleges, Lee said the NCA respects the choice of any individual as long as it is not against the law.
However, he also said the future meeting will consider public perception of such issues.
Taiwanese men who are still enrolled in school are currently allowed to defer their compulsory military service until age 33, with the upper age limit for military service set at age 35.
Asked if the NCA would consider revising the draft deferment limit from a limit on age to a limit on the number of years one is allowed to remain in the same schooling system, Lee said this issue would require further discussion.
The period of compulsory military service in Taiwan was reduced from 14 to 12 months in 2008.
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