MILITARY DEFERMENT

Mdm Claire Chiang See Ngoh asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence what are the reasons for granting and not granting military deferment to 18-year-old male Singaporeans and if he can give an update on (i) the number of such persons who were granted this deferment to complete their tertiary education before joining the army, from 1994-1998; (ii) which field of study they were in; and (iii) whether they were in local or overseas tertiary institutions.

Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam: Singaporean males are liable for full-time National Service enlistment once they are 18 years old.

For practical reasons, MINDEF, in general, defers their enlistment to allow them to complete the course of study they are undertaking when they turn 18. This means that MINDEF would generally grant deferment from full time national service to allow them to complete their GCE A level, ITE or diploma studies.

We also grant deferment for university studies if the applicant is able to commence his course of study before the enlistment age. For overseas university studies, he will have to commence his studies before the age of 17 1/2.

The numbers of persons granted deferment for tertiary (i.e. diploma and undergraduate) studies fluctuate from year to year. On average, over the last 4 years, about 4000-5000 deferments are granted annually for local tertiary studies, primarily in the local polytechnics. In addition, about 100 deferments are granted for overseas tertiary studies each year. I am unable to provide a further breakdown of these figures by field of study because we do not keep such records since field of study is not a factor for consideration for deferment.

On compassionate grounds, MINDEF also grants deferment to males if enlisting them for full-time national service will cause them and their family severe financial or social hardship. All applications for deferment on this ground are evaluated by an Advisory Board which comprises representatives from both the public and private sectors and which will make a recommendation to the Commander of Central Manpower Base. Deferment, if granted, is meant to give the males concerned time to sort out their financial or social problems before they are enlisted. In the past 3 years, an average of 50 cases a year were granted deferment on compassionate grounds.

MINDEF also grants deferment to those whose medical or physical condition renders them temporarily unfit for enlistment. The deferment is to enable them to recover from their medical and physical conditions. In the past 3 years, an average of 130 registrants are granted deferment on medical grounds each year.