10.3 C
London
Monday, December 11, 2023
HomeHow Long Is Compulsory Military Service?
Array

How Long Is Compulsory Military Service?

Date:

Related stories

Unemployment Rate. Turkey, 09:00 (GMT+2)

At 09:00 (GMT+2) October data on the Unemployment Rate will be published in Turkey. This indicator records all persons aged 15 years and older who were not employed during the reporting period, who used at least one of the job search channels in the la...

House Price Index from Rightmove Group Ltd. UK, 08:00 (GMT+2)

At 08:00 (GMT+2) in the UK, a House Price Index from the research company Rightmove Group Ltd. will be published, recording changes in the average cost of houses for sale. If in December it continues its negative trend from the current −1.3%, this coul...

Trauma Nation

Trauma Nation Authored by Todd Hayen via Off-Guardian.org, We now are all suffering from acute trauma, in a trauma nation. I would venture to say in a trauma world, but I am not certain of conditions in countries such as India, Indones...

Philippine President Vows to Defend Territory After Latest Maritime Clash

In two separate incidents over the weekend, Chinese vessels collided with and used water cannons against Philippine ships in contested parts of the South China Sea.

USA Is Not #1! These Are The Top-Performing Countries For Education

USA Is Not #1! These Are The Top-Performing Countries For Education Singapore has topped the latest world education ranking informally known as PISA, the Program for International Student Assessment, run by the OECD. The city-state’s pupil...
How Long Is Compulsory Military Service?

Taiwan is extending its mandatory military service in 2024 from four months to one year, as tensions continue to rise with China. Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen announced early last week that conscription will include more intense training so that the country is better equipped should China invade. Conscripts will also receive a higher monthly stipend, increasing from NT$6,500 (US$211) to NT$26,307 (US$856), which is roughly akin to minimum wage. In a poll conducted by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation in December, 73 percent of respondents supported the move.

Fewer than 30 countries worldwide still require whole age cohorts to complete military service. But, as Statista's Anna Fleck details below, among those that do, four months is a relatively short period of time. Taiwan had originally stipulated two years of service, however this was gradually cut down to four months as of 2013, with the intention of relying more heavily on volunteer forces instead.

As Statista's chart shows, North Korea stands at the other end of the spectrum in terms of duration, although media reports vary. The Guardian reported 10 years for men and 7 for women as of 2015, while the Indian Express puts the figures closer to 8 years for men and 5 for women. According to media reports, those in the elite class are usually able to avoid conscription.

Infographic: How Long Is Compulsory Military Service? | Statista

You will find more infographics at Statista

Israel too has a fairly long and rigorous conscription, albeit far shorter than North Korea. Most Israeli men over the age of 18 who are Jewish, Druze or Circassian must serve in the Israel Defense Forces for 32 months and women for 24 months, according to the IDF. Meanwhile, in Egypt, conscription is compulsory for men aged between 18 and 30 for up to 36 months. As with several countries on the chart, service can be pushed back until students finish their studies and there are a number of clauses that exempt men from joining the forces, for example, if they are the only son/sole breadwinner of the family.

South Korea, which is technically still at war with North Korea, also has mandatory conscription for all able-bodied men for a period of 18 months to 21 months, depending on the posting. Some athletes and classical artists are allowed to postpone or forgo the draft entirely. The K-Pop group BTS brought the issue to light recently, with debate over whether they could be excused from service. The decision was made that men can delay their military draft until the age of 28 and those working in the entertainment industry are now allowed to postpone their service until they turn 30. The oldest member of BTS, Jin, has now started his mandatory draft.

There’s huge variation in the rules for how long citizens must join the military in the countries that still have mandatory conscription as well as possible reasons for exemptions. For instance, in Turkey, new laws introduced in 2019 decreed that instead of the mandatory six months of military training, conscripts could do one month and buy-out the remaining five months for a fee of 31,000 Turkish Lira ($1,651), according to the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Conscripts' levels of higher education can also impact the type and length of their post.

Punishments for not enlisting vary too. In Eritrea, anyone evading or attempting to evade compulsory military service could face imprisonment of one to three years. According to DFAT, this could increase to 7-10 years imprisonment in a time of emergency or war.

While most countries with conscription only draft men, a handful of countries including North Korea, Israel, Norway, Sweden, Eritrea and Mozambique conscript women too.

Tyler Durden Sun, 01/15/2023 - 22:00

Subscribe

- Never miss a story with notifications

- Gain full access to our premium content

- Browse free from up to 5 devices at once

Latest stories

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here