Military Commissioner Otte: Think of mustering as a free “fitness test.”
In the debate on conscription, the Bundestag military commissioner, Henning Otte (CDU), supported a positive approach to future military service. Similar to Sweden, this should also be offered as a service in Germany, “almost as a free state fitness test,” Otte told the “Rheinische Post” (Wednesday edition). “Physical examinations can also contribute to public health services.”
In Sweden he saw how this could be achieved, Otte said. “Young people are welcomed there for personal consultations by competent human resources experts in bright and welcoming rooms.” Rather than painting a bleak picture of coercion and bad luck in the lottery at the district military replacement office, the odds should be taken into account, the military commissioner said.
He urged the government coalition to take quick decisions. “Expectations for soldiers and society as a whole are very high.” He believes that an agreement in the coalition committee no later than Thursday is absolutely necessary. “There is no time to lose for the law to be passed by the Bundestag in early December.”
The centerpiece of the new military service law is a plan to increase the force to about 260,000 active soldiers. There will be an additional 200,000 reserves. Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) wants to introduce a new, largely voluntary military service. The coalition mainly debated which mechanisms should be implemented if the number of volunteers was insufficient.
AFP
