Military conscription system; mandatory or professional?

Compulsory military service has been a topic of increased sensitivity in the public consciousness in recent years. The recent tragic incident in Saravan, which resulted in the death of three brave young conscripts, has once again highlighted the sensitivities surrounding compulsory military service. There are both supporters and opponents of compulsory military service, but it seems that the number of opponents is growing every day.

The Islamic Republic of Iran is one of the few countries in the world that enforces mandatory military service. The government not only ignores criticisms and protests against compulsory military service, but also responds to these protests with violence in some cases. Last September, a group of students, journalists, and conscripts gathered in front of the Organization of Public Duty to protest against mandatory military service, but their peaceful protest was met with force by security forces and some were arrested.

Critics of mandatory military service say that the golden years of young people are wasted in “forced service” without any significant achievement for them. Soldiers in military barracks are faced with a wide range of harmful behaviors, including violence, humiliation, and domination. In recent years, the increase in drug use and the rise in statistics of sexual harassment have raised concerns for families and those affected. To further examine and analyze this issue, we sat down with Dr. Hassan Sobhani, a full professor of economics at the University of Tehran and former member of parliament.

Do you agree or disagree with compulsory military service, considering your experiences in the country’s legislation? What should be the principles of military service in the country?

To solve a problem, one must have a comprehensive view and simultaneously consider the interests of all stakeholders. To judge military service in Iran, we must also consider its history and timing. The purpose of calling up individuals for mandatory military service has always been to strengthen the country’s defense foundations, which was a military necessity until two decades ago, but now it can be said that strengthening the country’s defense foundations is more understandable in terms of the country’s economic capabilities rather than its military capabilities.

In addition, a phenomenon like military service must be considered in terms of the interests of both parties involved. One of these parties is those who are called to serve, and the other is the recipients of these soldiers. The interests of those who are called to serve is to have this service eliminated, while the interests of the recipients is to have access to a virtually free workforce that these soldiers provide and use it to protect the security and national interests of the country, which is also a right. For this reason, I believe that a middle ground solution must be found. Military service must exist, but the important question is how it should be?

Iran cannot have a military force based on widespread conscription because its security demands it. We share borders and neighbors with 15 countries in the world and our entire region is plagued by widespread insecurity; even a country like Turkey is currently facing security issues. Iran is not like Europe, but it is important for us to be able to declare whether we are heading towards peace or war.

According to Article 147 of the Constitution, the government must use the personnel and technical equipment of the army for relief, educational, production, and construction activities during times of peace, while fully adhering to the principles of Islamic justice, to the extent that it does not harm the military readiness. We currently have thousands of graduates in electrical and mechanical fields who are being used in positions that have no relation to their education. This is why we have proposed in parliament that, given the current state of peace in the country, conscription should be replaced with professional conscription and they should be utilized for the real needs of the country and the military sectors.

Professional conscription means that we want 200,000 professional soldiers who voluntarily join the armed forces and receive a salary of 7 million tomans per month for a period of 5 years. If the performance of this soldier is positive during this period, then steps will be taken to officially recruit and increase their salary. However, I believe that military training should be comprehensive and universal, lasting 2-3 months.

In your opinion, why have the changes and developments that have taken place over the course of a century not been able to bring about any change in the mandatory conscription process in Iran?

The change in mandatory military service is based on the country’s defense policies. Each country considers a method for serving the system and duty based on its social structure, political, social, economic, and cultural conditions, as well as potential and actual threats. However, despite all of these conditions, it still seems that mandatory military service is not responsive to the current situation of the country and perhaps changes need to be made to it.

It should be noted that the issue of compulsory military service has a history of one hundred years. This historical aspect of serving duty presents a challenge in making decisions about its elimination, reduction of duration, buying service, and other related matters. While military methods and activities in Iran and the world have changed significantly compared to previous years, these changes have made compulsory military service less justifiable for its initial reasons, especially in regions such as Saravan, Mirjaveh, Zabol, and similar areas that have the least facilities in terms of technology, equipment, safety, and infrastructure. Soldiers in these regions, without professional and long-term training, alongside limited facilities, from the inadequate condition of roads and means of communication to the lack of medical and healthcare services and quick response support, ensure border security.

At the same time, the constant advancements in modern military technology have created new requirements in relation to the philosophy of soldiering; to the point where a small, professional and well-trained group with proper equipment are more efficient than countless minimally trained conscripts. Especially since the methods of warfare have changed and sheer numbers are no longer a guarantee of military superiority. In this regard, we can see the changes and developments in military technology in the conflicts between Russia and Ukraine. As a result, some countries have taken steps to reform their conscription system by thoroughly examining the economic, social, and political costs of conscription in their country.

Of course, some officials and executives have concerns about abolishing mandatory military service; including defending the independence and territorial integrity of the country, providing cheap and free human resources for military and security institutions, and unifying all young people in one uniform and law. However, scientific and expert work can also find solutions to these concerns. For example, the senior spokesperson of the Armed Forces General Staff said last year that soldiers have the most important role in defending border security and being present in times of crisis. But is there no other solution for these concerns? For instance, recruiting professional soldiers with sufficient salaries cannot meet the defense needs at the country’s borders?

In general, the wide economic benefits of the interested parties (recipients of conscription) have hindered the change and reform of this practice. In fact, this conservative approach among officials and military commanders has prevented necessary changes in the form and structure of military service over time.

As military service encompasses a wide range of individuals and families in Iran, it should be considered as a public policy and its examination and legislation is also among the duties of the Islamic Consultative Assembly. However, in Iran, according to an unwritten law, legislation regarding military service has been entrusted to the armed forces, making them the main and determining factor in this matter, and there will be no way to make any changes in the laws related to military service other than through the armed forces. This has made it difficult to make any significant changes in the laws and regulations regarding military service in Iran, as the executive body of this law is essentially the legislative body itself.

The main question raised by economists in this regard is whether the benefits created by military service for armed forces justify the economic costs incurred by individuals or not?

I believe that military service has three major flaws. First, it is mandatory. Second, it involves unpaid work. And third, during military service, a person cannot pursue their own desires and personal interests. The use of compulsory labor in the military leads to excessive exploitation of soldiers and individuals feel like they have no purpose in the military environment.

According to statistics, we currently have around 400,000 soldiers, and even our armed forces admit that only half of this number, meaning only 200,000, are needed and the rest don’t even have any tasks to do in the barracks. This goes against economic logic, as it is like using a free commodity excessively.

In America, compulsory military service was abolished after the end of the Vietnam War in 1973. A study conducted in 1998 concluded that the excessive use of cheap labor from soldiers had been overused. On the other hand, after the end of compulsory military service, the personnel costs of the US army significantly decreased, even though the soldiers’ salaries had also increased.

Compulsory military service means a tax that the poor pay to the wealthy. The statistics of the layers of Iranian society show strange changes. The first layer of society – the poorest class – has both greatly increased and become much younger in recent years, which is happening for the first time. The inflation of the first layer of society and its simultaneous youthfulness is the result of the decline of poor youth who are forced to serve in the military. The average monthly salary of a soldier is 4.8 million tomans, but this money never covers the expenses of military service, which requires them to leave their hometown and go to another city, and they are forced to borrow money from their families. Now imagine families who do not have enough income and have to bear this extra expense. The result of this situation is that many unemployed and uneducated young people from lower layers of society try to escape military service, and the statistics of the increasing size of these layers are also related to them.

Economic logic can help solve problems. We need to design a positive redistribution system that encourages people to join the military, instead of making everyone think about escaping from it. If the number of professional soldiers decreases to 200,000 and of course their salaries increase significantly, the poorer classes will be encouraged to join the military. They should also pay for this increase in salaries, which they do not want to go to the military, but with an installment payment system. In this way, positive redistribution in the form of taxes that the wealthy give to the government to return it to the poor, works.

Considering the inefficiency of the current conscription system, what solutions and suggestions can be proposed to improve the public duty system?

According to research reports conducted in various institutions, we can briefly mention four solutions that will be feasible if mandatory military service is eliminated, and can address the concerns of opponents of its removal.

First, because ensuring security and defending the country’s borders is one of the most important duties of any government and sovereignty, and this issue should never be forgotten, armed forces can reduce the length of military service for all conscripts by taking advantage of the successful experiences of countries such as Switzerland in this field. By providing basic and advanced military training and life experience in challenging military environments, they can greatly assist in developing individuals’ skills. Additionally, by studying the behavior of other countries in relation to this issue, valuable experiences will be available to decision-makers in the conscription system.

The second solution that can be proposed in this regard is to abolish the conscription law and convert it to a voluntary army, which has been successful in many countries around the world. In this regard, by increasing the salaries of soldiers to the minimum level of employees and retirees, which is approved by the Islamic Consultative Assembly and the government, the motivation of individuals to join the voluntary army can be increased. Additionally, there are currently about 3 to 3.5 million unemployed people in the country, and it can be expected that if they are paid the minimum wage and provided with welfare benefits upon employment in the armed forces, these individuals will join the voluntary army and there will even be more volunteers than the required number of soldiers. In this case, the armed forces have the opportunity to increase the productivity of soldiers by properly training and equipping the volunteers, and in the long run, they will need fewer soldiers for military operations. This requires the armed forces to turn a blind eye to the

Thirdly, the establishment of a volunteer army and the abolishment of mandatory public service in Iran has always been met with criticism due to its costs. Critics of this plan argue that it will put pressure on the government’s general budget and deem it ineffective. However, successful experiences of various countries, especially European countries, in this field show that in addition to significant cost savings in expenses and the government’s general budget, it is possible to reduce the pressure on the government’s general budget by implementing taxes under the title of security tax. This is because security is a concept that all individuals in a society benefit from and the costs of establishing it should not be solely paid by soldiers.

Fourth, another proposal that can be considered in this regard is the formation of a market called “Military Market”, in which the hidden tax amount paid by each soldier who does not wish to serve for a certain period of time will be collected. The resources obtained from this will be deposited in a fund called the Security Fund to finance the creation of a voluntary army. This fund, which will have access to immense resources due to the number of absentees in the country, will be at the disposal of the armed forces. With the least amount of expenses on the government’s budget and the country’s economy, these forces will be able to carry out their military duties and activities. In addition, the establishment of the Security Fund will provide the armed forces with the opportunity to increase the amount of hidden tax paid by each soldier annually, taking into account the inflation rate in the country, and obtain even greater resources.

Thank you for the opportunity you have given us.