Merits of the right to serve
School leavers in most places can choose a career path in the armed forces, but that is not possible in Hong Kong. Nor do residents with a longing to serve their nation or experience the military life have that chance. There is nothing in the Basic Law which precludes signing up, but there are vexing issues that stand in the way. A senior People's Liberation Army officer's broaching of the subject finally puts it on the table of public discussion. Governments on both sides of the border have, in the almost 14 years since China resumed sovereignty over Hong Kong, publicly avoided the idea. The 'one country, two systems' model puts Hong Kong's defence in the hands of the central government and that, presumably, is all that officials believe needs to be said and done. As our city has never had a military force of its own, recruitment and the concept of army service have been figuratively, and literally, foreign issues for residents. But as Hong Kong and the mainland move ever closer, authorities have to take into account the changing environment.
PLA Chief of General Staff Chen Bingde, a member of the Central Military Commission, has given them an opportunity to begin exploring how to make it possible. He said this week that residents were welcome to join the armed forces. There was no doubt an element of patriotism in his expressing the sentiment, but as a military officer he also well knows the recruitment challenges of every defence, security and humanitarian force. Demobilised soldiers have to be replaced; it is in the national interest that recruits of a high calibre can be found.
There are several stumbling blocks to the PLA opening its doors to Hong Kong recruits, pay expectations being the least of them. Mainland officials may wonder about the loyalty of residents. Serving soldiers are likely to question whether young people used to the easy life of a wealthy city have the mettle to train and serve in harsh and tough conditions. But above all these is the reality that the PLA upholds the absolute leadership of the Communist Party of China and is constitutionally bound to do so.
The PLA's actions are guided by the party's philosophy. That raises the problem of how Hong Kong people, who may have an ideological difference, could serve the country. But there are stop-gap solutions while the complexities are being resolved. Residents could be recruited, perhaps as an auxiliary force to the 6,000 PLA soldiers already stationed here. They would be under the control of the PLA, but managed by the people of Hong Kong. Training could be here or on the mainland.
It is too much to expect that residents will be joining the PLA any time soon. There are, nonetheless, merits to the idea, from perspectives of employment, defence, humanitarian needs and having the right to serve the nation. Authorities have to start in earnest the process of making local recruitment possible.
