By Jermyn Chow, The Sunday Times, 15 Sep 2013
Families matter as much as serving the nation - so operationally ready national servicemen (NSmen) should get time off from their annual in-camp training to attend important family functions.
This call came from participants in an all-female focus-group discussion on how to strengthen the commitment to national service.
The 22 women said men should be given flexibility to arrange their schedules so they can spend more time with loved ones. They want them to be released from training to attend occasions such as births, deaths and weddings.
Currently, NSmen do not get time off for such events unless they get special permission from superiors.
Accounts and administrative executive Cecilia Ho, who has a 27-year-old son, said: "While we recognise that they have to train to defend the country, they also have to play their family role and it will be good if they are present during important family events."
The topic of balancing NS commitment and family life was a major issue during the three-hour session at Safra Toa Payoh club.
It was also attended by Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for Health and Manpower, community members, mothers, teachers and executives.
Dr Khor, who sits on the Committee to Strengthen National Service (CSNS), recognised that giving NSmen flexibility for family commitments is a good idea and said that it should be seriously considered as part of a "good human resource practice".
Currently, after completing two years of compulsory service, NSmen are called up every year for 10 years, for up to 40 days of in-camp training each time.
Friday evening's session was the first all-female group for the second phase of the CSNS focus-group discussion.
Other suggestions included allowing women to volunteer in the armed forces and cutting NS stints from two years to one.
The views will be channelled to the CSNS, which is chaired by Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen.
The 20-member committee is made up of ministers, MPs, top military brass, NSmen and employers.