In the first week of January, it is not only the Folk och Försvar national conference that is the highlight. It is also the start for a new cohort of total defence conscripts at the Swedish Conscription and Assessment Agency, who during the calendar year turn 18, to fill in the conscription form. Specifically, 107,000 young people received the letter in their mailboxes.
My unit is responsible for the information mission that is an important task in our agency's instructions. "The Swedish Conscription and Assessment Agency shall specifically be responsible for disseminating information about what the law (1994:1809) on total defence conscription entails to those who provide information in writing according to Chapter 2, Section 1 of the law on total defence conscription." Already in December last year, we had informed both relatives and the cohort about their obligations. We had also sent an information brochure to all the young people with information about the law and the obligation to fill in the conscription form.
When the agency, based on the responses in the conscription form, has informed the young people whether they will be called or not called for conscription, the next part of the information mission begins. According to the ordinance (1995:238) on total defence conscription, "the Swedish Conscription and Assessment Agency shall, before and during conscription, provide advice and information to the total defence conscripts about military service, civil service, and the training reserve, as well as the right to be a conscientious objector." This part of the information mission starts in April and concludes the following year in April. The cohort born in 2005 will be conscripted from May this year to April next year. We begin by sending out the conscription handbook. It has proven to be a very well-read book, containing "everything" about conscription, military service, and wartime placement. It also includes information that if one does not pass conscription, they can join one of the 18 voluntary defence organisations we have in Sweden.
The press release "This many will be conscripted in your municipality" is picked up by most local newspapers and local radio during the spring. Since military service was reactivated, local interest in how many will be conscripted and perform military service has increased. Local engagement is very important for the public anchoring of military service, and therefore there are many interviews and media inquiries for me and my colleagues.
This year, we have produced a number of new instructional films to clarify what happens during conscription. We create the information films based on questions we receive from the conscripts or our own staff. In this year's films, we have described, among other things, what is included in a preliminary investigation and a medical examination. The best part is that it is our own staff who appear in the films, and they are incredibly pedagogical and credible "actors." When the conscripts arrive, they recognise the nurse, doctor, psychologist, or registration officer, and we hope that the nervousness might ease a bit then.
"During conscription, you are not allowed to bring your phone, so feel free to bring a book." When I walk around one of our assessment offices in Stockholm, Malmö, or Gothenburg (western Sweden), you see young people sitting and reading books or the conscription handbook. For many, the withdrawal is probably high not being able to hold their mobile when the waiting time becomes long between the stages of conscription.
At least once a month, we have sent out newsletters to everyone who will be conscripted with training tips and other good things to think about before conscription. This year, we also had to inform that some have received fake text messages and even fake emails. In these troubled times, we are also affected and have reported several incidents to the police.
This year, we have also formed a group on Facebook for those who will be conscripted, which currently has over 7,000 members. –Is anyone going to be conscripted in Stockholm on Monday? –Yes, I will be conscripted then! –Great, see you there. –Is anyone going to be conscripted in Malmö? I'm on my way there and have forgotten my contact lens solution, does anyone have some I can borrow? –I'm on my way, so you can borrow from me. –How much have you trained? –I'm very nervous. Is anyone else nervous? Fantastic conversations are taking place, and by now everyone understands that one has an obligation and that in Sweden we have quite a few duties, of which military service is one.
During the spring and autumn, we have had many contacts with the Netherlands. Military service has been dormant for 29 years in the Netherlands, and now the debate has been ongoing for a few years about how they can improve personnel supply in the country. My unit has had several journalists from the Netherlands asking questions, and there have also been several delegations from their Ministry of Defence and armed forces visiting.
In the summer and early autumn, Novus conducts our impact measurement to see if the information mission has had an effect and if knowledge about total defence conscription has increased from the baseline measurement that Novus conducted last year in November. We have also examined the knowledge and attitude of parents and relatives. Only 17 percent of the relatives know that one becomes liable for total defence conscription the calendar year one turns 16. The knowledge is not very high among the population about what applies, so our information mission is truly ...