SOLUTION BEFORE ACTION: A committee recommended implementing the system in stages and collecting data on volunteer motivation to share with potential recruits

Taipei Times
Date: Dec 24, 2017
By: Shih Hsiao-kuang and William Hetherington  /  Staff reporter, with staff writer

Moving to an all-volunteer military would put the nation at risk, as volunteer recruitment numbers remain too low to meet operational needs, a Control Yuan subcommittee said.

Low recruitment numbers would result in an insufficient number of officers and an inability to effectively respond to natural disasters, said committee members Tsai Pei-tsun (蔡培村) and Chen Ching-tsai (陳慶財), who were tasked with investigating the issue.

The Executive Yuan and the Ministry of National Defense should look into solutions before ending conscription, they added.

The ministry is implementing measures to enlist new recruits while keeping existing recruits in active duty, spokesman Major General Chen Chung-chi (陳中吉) said, adding that volunteer numbers for this year have met targets.    [FULL  STORY]