China's Push for Military Education: Preparing the Next Generation for National Defense

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In a brightly colored hallway at Beijing Jiaotong University's affiliated elementary school, a group of children, no older than six or seven, stands in a line, each one holding a replica of military equipment. A boy clutches a toy handgun, while others struggle to balance fake assault rifles. Their blue and white tracksuits are partially covered by oversized police flak jackets, and their heads are dwarfed by too-large artillery helmets. These images, captured in April and shared online by the school, are part of a broader narrative that reflects the Chinese government's growing emphasis on military education for civilians, starting at increasingly younger ages.

 

The school’s post accompanying these photos proudly stated its efforts to "promote the main theme of patriotism," making it a crucial part of the school's ideological, political, and moral education. "We will create a strong atmosphere of national defense education, carry out rich and colorful activities, cultivate students’ patriotism, love for the army, and organizational discipline, and cultivate their ambitions to build and defend the motherland from an early age," the post read. This elementary school is one of thousands across China that have been designated as "model schools for national defense education." This designation is part of a national push to increase military awareness and skills among the population, a movement that has gained momentum under the leadership of Xi Jinping.

 

In January, the Ministry of Education and the Central Military Commission announced a new batch of model schools, nearly doubling their number. This expansion is likely to be accompanied by legal changes that would extend mandatory military training, including "cadet activities," to students under the age of 15. In April, the National People's Congress, China's rubber-stamp legislature, gave its first reading to a bill proposing amendments to the National Defense Education Law. These amendments would make military training a more prescriptive part of the curriculum, emphasizing the need for basic military training in high schools and tertiary institutions, with the possibility of extending it to younger students for the first time.

 

 

The draft of the bill stated, "All state organs and armed forces, all political parties and public groups, all enterprises and institutions and grassroots self-government organizations of a mass character shall, in light of their specific conditions, organize national defense education in their respective regions, departments, and units." This growing emphasis on military training for civilians is a reflection of heightened nationalism in China under Xi Jinping. It also signals the increasing risk of conflict, particularly over Taiwan, as Xi has made clear his distaste for what he perceives as declining masculinity in China and the need to prepare the population for potential armed conflict.

 

Bethany Allen, head of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute's China program, remarked, "Requiring children to engage in performative military education activities at younger and younger ages normalizes China’s increasingly aggressive foreign policy, and could potentially prepare the country psychologically for a contingency in which China engages in armed conflict." Analysts based in China have echoed this sentiment, noting that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is learning from the ongoing war in Ukraine and recognizing the potential need for a population that can be quickly mobilized for conflict.

 

The increased militarism in China under Xi Jinping has heightened the risk of conflict with other nations, particularly over Taiwan. Despite the significant overhaul and modernization of China's armed forces, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has reportedly struggled with issues such as corruption and low recruitment. In September 2023, the Defense Ministry announced that primary and secondary schools across the country had begun the new school year with defense education lessons, aimed at "planting a deep sense of patriotism, respect for the military, and concern for national defense in the heart of students." However, it remains unclear whether these lessons are improving recruitment, as China’s stringent censorship culture makes it difficult to assess their impact on public opinion.

 

Feng Shanguo, a former soldier who participated in leading defense lessons at his child’s school, Neijiang No. 13 in Sichuan, told state media, "It can help children to build tenacity, courage, and hard-working qualities." While such comments are commonly published, they offer little insight into the broader societal impact of this military education push. According to Katja Drinhausen, head of Merics’ research program on Chinese policy, military education is just one aspect of a broader campaign to bolster the CCP’s strength at a time when the party is grappling with multiple challenges, including economic downturns, sporadic social unrest, regional disputes, and worsening natural disasters driven by climate change.

 

“It’s important to put together the different pieces of the broader ambition,” Drinhausen said. “There is renewed focus on military training and creating identity and buy-in from the broader population on what the military does, which also serves to build internal cohesion when the party needs to find new sources of social and political legitimacy cohesion because the economy isn’t doing it any more.” Drinhausen noted that this renewed focus began with patriotic education in schools, followed by the rollout of national security education not just on the mainland but also in Hong Kong. “I do think these are different layers that are part of a broader strategic refocus on rebuilding the strength of the CCP inside China,” she added.

 

It is also crucial to remember that the PLA, while being the armed forces of China, is officially the military arm of the CCP, not of the Chinese state or its people. The PLA has been used in the past to violently suppress domestic protests, a history that adds another layer of complexity to the current push for military and defense-focused education. Drinhausen emphasized the importance of viewing these developments within the context of different possible scenarios. “When you look at it that way, all these measures aren’t necessarily solely a precursor for war but serve all sorts of crisis management for the party going forward,” she said.

 

As China continues to expand its military education programs, the lines between patriotism, nationalism, and militarism become increasingly blurred. The push to instill a strong sense of national defense in the youngest members of society is not just about preparing for potential conflict but also about reinforcing the strength and legitimacy of the CCP at a time of significant internal and external challenges. Whether this approach will lead to a more militarized society or simply bolster the CCP’s control remains to be seen, but the implications of this shift are likely to resonate far beyond China’s borders.

 

Credit: The Guardian  2024-08-12

 

 

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