離開
進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》 Trial program to train reservists
Reservists participating in the Han Guang military exercise raise their fists in an undated picture. Photo provided by the Army Infantry Training Command
By Lo Tien-pin, Lu Yi-hsuan and Jake Chung / Staff reporters, with staff writer
A trial training program is to be implemented next year in a bid to improve the fighting capabilities of reservist forces, with the ultimate goal of creating a force like the US National Guard, the Ministry of National Defense said.
The participants will, during the duration of the training, be seen as full-time soldiers, with all their rights and benefits, General Mobilization Office Director Tsai Chung-cheng （蔡忠誠） said, adding that the “voluntary short-term service for reservists” program is “not a survival game.”
During the trial period, the program would prioritize specialized or highly technical units, with participants reattached to their original units to facilitate reintegration and thus shorten the time required to attain peak unit performance, Tsai said.
The program is listed in the ministry’s fiscal 2017 budget under the Five-Year Plan for the Improvement and Administration of the Military, and selected units across the nation would participate in the program.
People volunteering for the program would, if they pass the selection process, serve two days each month during the trial period, the ministry said.
The ministry would decide whether to expand the program by increasing the number of days the volunteers would serve each month or to introduce further measures to aid the program based on whether the trial would be able to meet the goal of maintaining the combat capability of the reservists, the ministry said.
The program is still in the planning stages and the ministry encourages reservists to make recommendations, Tsai said, adding that the ministry encourages people to sign up for the program so that the ministry would have a better idea of which units to select for the trial.
The ministry polled reservists called to training from late May to early July to gather data that would aid the nation in forming a viable reservist mobilization system in line with the ministry’s policy of “improved volunteer service,” the ministry said.
The ministry is aware that the majority of reservists have jobs and the program might interfere with their obligations, Tsai said, adding that the government is mulling the possibility of offering tax cuts as an incentive for corporations to cooperate with the program.
The ministry will also be offering a daily salary for the volunteers based on the rank they held upon discharge from service, which would then be augmented by a certain sum, Tsai said.
While the ministry is using the US National Guard as a template, Tsai said the basic system is different, as Taiwan’s reservist system would draw on people who served in the military, while the National Guard is a standing force with its own bases and equipment.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tsai Shih-ying （蔡適應） voiced support for the program, saying that it would help increase reservists’ combat capability that could help frontline troops should Taiwan come under invasion.
Chinese Nationalist Party （KMT） Legislator Ma Wen-chun （馬文君） questioned how the ministry would ensure the quality of the participants, adding that the short training duration could not possibly produce useful results.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
