Half of the Flemish people has been won for reintroduction

It has been 31 years since that conscription was abolished in our country, but more and more voices are popping up to introduce them again. The current geopolitical situation – with wars in Ukraine and the Middle East and Donald Trump as unpredictable leader of the US – has led to our attitudes around defense changing.

A study commissioned by Ivox and the table of Gert shows that 50.8 percent of the Flemish agree with the statement: « The mandatory military service of a minimum of one year is best re -introduced. » Male respondents (55.3 percent) in particular and people who have obtained a secondary education diploma at most (56.4 percent) are in favor. Also significant: older people are more likely to be the idea than younger people. 60.8 percent of the over-55s aged the over-55 percent compared to only 36.1 percent for -34 year olds.

The research is the result of a survey of 1,000 Flemish people, representative of language, gender, age and diploma. According to the researchers, there is an error margin of 3.02 percent.

Read too. These young people want to enter the army, and not just to protect our homeland: « Being prepared for the worst »

Voluntarily

Despite the many proponents, a mandatory year of service in practice does not seem to be right. According to Minister of Defense Theo Francken (N-VA), the army is currently not ready for logistics. However, Francken has put an alternative on the table: a voluntary military service. He wants to send a letter to all young men and women of 18 years with an invitation to get to Defense for a year. Opposite the French -speaking RTL, he also confirmed at the end of February what financial reimbursement should be on the other hand: « About 2,000 euros net per month. I think it is well paid, but they have to work for it. »

The hope is that some of those young people will stay at the Ministry of Defense even after that year and can help to expand the number of recruits. No fewer than 5,000 vacancies can be filled in the coming two years.

Defense Minister Theo Francken is a guest in Gert’s table tonight to discuss this survey: Wednesday evening at 8 pm on Play4.