The polls point one way: most Taiwanese people want military service to be longer. And the latest numbers from the Taiwan Public Opinion Foundation show just that.
More than 70% of respondents agreed that Taiwan should extend its military service to one year or more. That’s compared to less than 20% who disagreed.
Among those who still have their doubts is Wang Li-min, a graduate student at the National Taiwan University.
He disagrees with how the government has handled the eight-month extension.
"If you're going to extend that period of time people are spent in the military, you're going to have to persuade them that these trainings are necessary, that eight months is necessary for the wellbeing of our national defense."
The new rules will apply to boys born in 2005 — who are just 17 years old now. Wang says they’ve been overlooked.
"I do think that the government has ignored young people.
"DPP officials claiming that they care about young people... but on the matter, on the subject matter of the extension of conscription, they're not really asking for their voice, asking for their opinions."
On the streets of Taipei, people had a range of opinions.
"Of course [lengthening training] is helpful. It helps train young people up, right? If they serve in the military for just four months, how can they learn to use a gun?"
If the training has real substance and it’s helpful for going to war or holding military exercises then I have no problem with extending it."
"The main thing is the content [of the training]. The content is more important."
"If you’re just mopping floors or doing less demanding training then I think there’s no need to extend it."
It’s clear from the polls that overall, Taiwan supports having a longer military service. But some say it’s the quality of the training that matters — not the length. It’ll be up to the government to prove those extra eight months are worth it for the country’s defense.
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