Dutch gov't hopes to avoid military conscription, but "can't rule it out"

The Dutch government hopes to avoid military conscription for young people, State Secretary Derk Boswijk of Defense said in a parliamentary debate about the Defense budget. But he cannot guarantee this. “I hope a mandatory draft will not be necessary, but I cannot rule it out,” he told the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, NOS reports.

The coalition agreement states that if the government fails to expand the defense force to 122,000 people within four years, it will reintroduce a “selective conscription requirement.” Selective means that only specific groups will be called up. The Dutch Armed Forces currently consist of around 80,000 people, including civilians and reservists.

GroenLinks-PvdA, SP, and DENK are concerned. They’ve heard that young people fear being drafted into the army, like in Sweden, where young people who fail to respond to the draft face a fine.

“What does this mean for young people?” GroenLinks-PvdA parliamentarian Kati Piri asked the State Secretary. “Will they get a prison sentence if they don’t show up?” DENK and SP worry about young people being “forced” into war, whether they want to serve or not.

Boswijk tried to allay the parties’ concerns. He believes that Defense will recruit enough motivated people, who in turn will encourage other groups to enlist in the military. He referred to the “Maxima effect” - Defense has received more applications since Queen Maxima signed up and trained as a reservist.

The State Secretary stressed that this will be the main focus. “I hope a culture will develop where people are eager to contribute,” he said, adding that he has “no interest” in forcing demotivated people into the army.

He also said that there will be no immediate mandatory draft. It will be implemented in stages. A voluntary survey has already begun. If that doesn’t yield enough people, a mandatory survey will follow. If that’s still not enough, people may be called up for a mandatory interview and medical examination. “It’s a gradual process,” he said. “We’re not jumping from the basement to the attic all at once.”

The Netherlands still has compulsory military conscription for people aged 17 to 45, but no one has been drafted since 1997. In the event of an emergency, such as a war breaking out, a compulsory draft can be reinstated immediately, Boswijk said. If an emergency arises, “we’ll go from the basement to the attic all at once.”