(File photo). Tajik conscripts are drafted to the army twice a year.
DUSHANBE — Tajikistan is aiming to cut the term of mandatory military service from two years to 18 months, the country’s justice minister has said. Abdumannon Kholiqzoda told reporters on February 7 that the proposed change is included in draft amendments to the law on mandatory military service that the Justice Ministry has sent to the presidential office.
The proposal is to be further discussed by representatives of other ministries and state entities, Kholiqzoda said. According to the minister, one of the goals of the reform is to put an end to mass raids conducted by law enforcement agencies to try to locate young men evading military service.
In Tajikistan, conscripts are drafted to the army twice a year, in spring and autumn. Each time at least 15,000 men aged between 18 and 27 join the armed forces.
Exemptions from military duty are given to full-time university students, the sole sons in families, married men with more than one child, and individuals unfit for service for medical reasons.–RFE/RL’s Tajik Service
