Conscription and armies in the world

In each year, male citizens reaching 18 are to be drafted for military service of 2 years. If not drafted immediately, they remain liable to draft until 22 years old. Female citizens of the same age range may also be drafted based on military demands. Full-time students are eligible for deferments. The conscription is selective and who is actually drafted is not known exactly. As Falun Gong is strictly banned, its members are barred from serving the military.

For Chinese Special Administrative Regions (SARs) - Hong Kong and Macao - there is no conscription.

France

The compulsory National Service is actually suspended (law October 97) for anyone born after December 31st, 1978. The actual Army obligations of any person (boy & girls) is to get registered, and to spend a day to be "selected". People not doing so can't
take a national exam (including driving license) until 25 but this
"punishment" is cancelled as soon as they submit. The possibility of being a CO is suspended as well ! But for the one remaining (older), it is possible to avoid any National Service being CO.

Conscription was abolished 2001.06.27. /Wordnews, BBC/

Israel

Alternative service exists on very strict conditions /"Conscience Committees"/, see Yinnon Hiller's case on the Jewish Peace Fellowship web page

Italy

2000.10.24. The Senate has approved the law for the abolition of conscription in peacetime. In 2006 the law will be finally
implemented. The last conscripts will be those born in 1985.

The situation in November 2001

Korea /South Korea/

Compulsory military service /26 months/
Salary of conscripts: 8 USD /month

Civil service /only for health reason/ 28 months

Malaysia

http://www.goasiapacific.com/news/GoAsiaPacificBNA_1005921.htm
Malaysia has selected 85,000 18-year-olds of both sexes to undergo its first
compulsory national service program.
The defence minister, Najib Rajak, says the three-month call-up, aimed at
instilling patriotism and building national unity, is due to begin in
February.
He says it will include basic military and firearms training, "patriotic
training", character-building and community service.
Mr Najib says the conscripts were randomly picked by computer from 480,000 Malaysians born in 1986, although efforts were made to match the county's ethnic make-up of Malays, Chinese and Indians.
BBC article here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3299271.stm

Norway

Concsription.

Slovakia

The army of the Slovak Republic

Conscription 9 months service, 2002: 6 months

Sweden

1812 Parliament decided on what was to be the first general conscription, consisting of all men aged 20 to 25, as possible reinforcement to the standing army.

1999 46000 males are processed and evaluated for duty, of those 19000 are assigned to positions within the defence forces and 16000 start their training (because some had been assigned to units which were disbanded).
2000 Government suggest the introduction of female conscription too, and it seems possible it'll get introduced, but in July it turns out the
proposal was rather for discussion only.

Source: Urban: History of conscription in Sweden

Taiwan

Source:
Date: 2000.10.12. 02.
From: J.J.
Conscription 22 months military service. Alternative service is possible by applications. Most serve 26~28 months (4~6 months more than serving the military); some serve 22 months for health reasons only (no extra period); those for religious reasons serve 33 months.

Taiwan Nation without Conscription! (Campaign against conscription by the Republic of China)

Taipei Times, 2000.04.26. Conscription is harming Taiwan

USA

There is no conscription since 1973, and draft registration was once suspended in 1975 and resumed in 1980. Since that time, nearly all male US citizens and male aliens living in the US
must register the Selective Service when they are 18~25 years old. Men cannot register after reaching 26 years old.
Repeal of the Selective Service Act. 2000.04.26
************************************

Conscription in the world

Source: Report of the Secretary-General prepared pursuant to Commission    resolution 1995/83
                Š Copyright 1997
         Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
                Geneva, Switzerland

****************

1. Countries or territories in which there is no conscription

   Antigua and Barbuda
   Australia
   Bahamas
   Bahrain
   Bangladesh
   Barbados
   Belgium
   Belize
   Botswana
   Brunei Darussalam
   Burkina Faso
   Burundi
   Cameroon
   Canada
   Costa Rica
   Djibouti
   Fiji
   Gabon
   Gambia
   Ghana
   Grenada
   Haiti
   Hong Kong
   Iceland
   India
   Ireland
   Jamaica
   Japan
   Jordan
   Kenya
   Kyrgyzstan
   Lesotho
   Luxembourg
   Malawi
   Malaysia
   Maldives
   Malta
   Mauritania
   Mauritius
   Monaco
   Myanmar
   Nepal
   Netherlands
   New Zealand
   Nicaragua
   Nigeria
   Oman
   Pakistan
   Panama
   Papua New Guinea
   Qatar
   Rwanda
   San Marino
   Saudi Arabia
   Sierra Leone
   South Africa
   Sri Lanka
   Suriname
   Swaziland
   Tonga
   Trinidad and Tobago
   Uganda
   United Arab Emirates
   United Kingdom of Great
   Britain and Northern Ireland
   United States of America
   Uruguay
   Vanuatu
   Zambia
   Zimbabwe

2. Countries in which selective conscription exists but military service is voluntary in principle

   Argentina
   Benin
   Bhutan
   Central African Republic
   Chad
   China
   Honduras
   Indonesia
   Côte d'Ivoire
   Mali
   Niger
   Senegal
   Togo

3. Countries in which conscription exists but is not enforced

El Salvador
Namibia

4. Countries in which provision is made for civilian and/or unarmed military service

   Angola
   Austria
   Belarus
   Brazil
   Bulgaria
   Cape Verde
   Cyprus
   Czech Republic
   Denmark
   Estonia
   Federal Republic of
   Germany
   Finland
   France
   Hungary
   Italy
   Latvia
   Lithuania
   Norway
   Poland
   Portugal
   Slovakia
   Slovenia
   Spain
   Sweden
   Ukraine

5. Countries in which provision is made for non-combatant service in the armed forces

(a) On a legal basis

Croatia
Yugoslavia

(b) On an ad hoc basis

   Bosnia and Herzegovina
   Russian Federation
   Switzerland

6. Countries in which there is conscription without alternative service

   Afghanistan
   Albania
   Algeria
   Bolivia
   Cambodia
   Chile
   China
   Colombia
   Cuba
   Democratic People's
   Republic of Korea
   Dominican Republic
   Ecuador
   Egypt
   Equatorial Guinea
   Ethiopia
   Greece
   Guatemala
   Guinea-Bissau
   Honduras
   Georgia
   Guinea
   Iran (Islamic Republic of)
   Iraq
   Israel
   Kazakstan
   Lao People's Democratic
   Republic
   Lebanon
   Liberia
   Libyan Arab Jamahirya
   Madagascar
   Mexico
   Mongolia
   Morocco
   Mozambique
   Paraguay
   Peru
   Philippines
   Republic of Korea
   Romania (a draft law on
   alternative service has been
   submitted)
   Singapore
   Somalia
   Sudan
   Thailand
   Tunisia
   Turkey
   Venezuela
   Viet Nam
   Yemen

*******************

Report on CO in Europe.

Exercise of the right of conscientious objection to military service in Council of Europe member states
Doc. 8809 13 July 2000 Report

Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights

Rapporteur: Mr Dick Marty, Switzerland, Liberal, Democratic and Reformers' Group

Excerpts:

... For all these reasons, the Assembly recommends that the right to conscientious
       objection to military service be incorporated into the European Convention on Human Rights,
       on the eve of the 50th anniversary of its signature, and that states take the necessary steps
       to ensure respect for this right.

I. Draft recommendation

       1.         The Assembly recalls its Resolution 337 (1967) and its Recommendation 816 (1977)
       on the right of conscientious objection and the right of conscientious objection to military
       service respectively, and also Recommendation No. R (87) 8 of the Committee of Ministers.
       It notes that the exercise of the right of conscientious objection to military service has been
       an on-going concern of the Council of Europe for over thirty years.

       2.         The right of conscientious objection is a fundamental aspect of the right to freedom
       of thought, conscience and religion enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
       and the European Convention on Human Rights.

5. The Assembly accordingly recommends that the Committee of Ministers invite those
member states which have not yet done so to introduce into their legislation:

i. the right to be registered as a conscientious objector at any time before,
during or after conscription, or performance of military service;

ii. the right for permanent members of the armed forces to apply for the
granting of conscientious objector status;

iii. the right for all conscripts to receive information on conscientious objector
status and the means of obtaining it;

iv. genuine alternative service, which should be neither deterrent nor punitive in
character.

       6.         The Assembly also recommends that the Committee of Ministers incorporate the
       right of conscientious objection to military service into the European Convention on Human
       Rights by means of a protocol amending Articles 4.3.b and 9.

       II.                Explanatory memorandum by Mr Marty, Rapporteur
.........
       B.        General points concerning the right of conscientious objection to military
            service in Europe

       4.         The debate on the right of conscientious objection may seem superfluous at a time
       when a number of European countries are abolishing national service in favour of fully
       professional armies. Nevertheless, compulsory military service (conscription) still exists in
       most Council of Europe member states. It has either been abolished or has never existed in
       Andorra, Belgium, Ireland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, the
       United Kingdom and San Marino. Spain will be putting an end to conscription on 31
       December 2002 at the latest; France will follow suit on 1 January 2003. The Netherlands still
       has a law on conscription, but this contains no provisions on the performance of military
       service. Recruits are no longer called for medical examination, and the last conscripts were
       called up in February 1996, to do six months' service. In Italy, the government has introduced
       a bill for gradual abolition of compulsory military service and for the establishment of a
       professional army. Eastern Europe is not exempt from the trend, which may lead to
       increased reliance on regular servicemen and the end of compulsory military service in the
       Czech Republic, Poland and Ukraine.

... In several Eastern European countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia and
       Ukraine), conscripts frequently avoid doing military service. In these countries between 10
       and 20% of conscripts on average are actually enlisted for military service. Since all
       defaulters cannot be prosecuted, some states make an example of only a few by bringing
       them to court, or declare amnesties (Russia and Ukraine).

...........
b. Absolute objectors and prison sentences

       27.       "Absolute objectors", i.e. those who refuse to perform both military service and any
       type of alternative service, pose a special problem. Failure to report for duty when first called
       up is usually punishable as such, or as desertion, under the military offences code or the
       criminal code. European countries� laws on penalties which may be imposed on recognised
       conscientious objectors who refuse to perform alternative service differ widely. Many Eastern
       European countries, which have no specific criminal laws on such cases, simply apply the law
       on failure to do military service to conscientious objectors (Russia and Ukraine). Most,
       however, have inserted specific provisions in their criminal legislation in this field (Sweden).
       The penalty that may be imposed is either the same as that imposed for failure to report for
       duty or, sometimes, less harsh (Finland). Germany has found a general solution to the
       problem of absolute objection by exempting recognised objectors from compulsory civilian
       service if they can show that they are, or will be, employed for a definite time by a charitable
       association working in the health sector.

       28.       Rejection of all compulsory service, civilian or military, cannot be accepted in legal
       systems which provide for compulsory service, since this would be tantamount to privileging
       certain groups (particularly Jehovah's Witnesses), and would flagrantly violate the principle of
       the equality of citizens before the law. Swiss law stipulates that anyone who refuses to
       perform both military and civilian service must do some form of compulsory work. If a country
       insists on imposing prison sentences, the sentence must in all cases be short and entail no
       unduly harsh conditions of detention.

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