Here's another:
Fertility rates could be affected
I REFER to Mr Han Yong Yuan's letter, 'Women should do national
service as well' (ST, Nov 15).
At first, I agreed that in the interests of equality of the sexes
and giving women the same benefits men enjoy, women should take on
some national service responsibility.
But such a move should be taken with extreme caution and
forethought.
As it is, we are facing a severe fertility crisis because working
professional women are putting off getting married and getting
pregnant in favour of establishing a career first.
I believe that the median age of marriage is increasing, as is the
age of those giving birth for the first time. Indeed, the number of
childless couples, from personal experience as well as reports, is
quite worrying, spawning a multi-million-dollar industry in
fertility treatments.
If national service were to be implemented for women, it must be
for at least 12 months for it to have any meaningful effect on
Singapore as well as themselves.
Then, we would be looking at an additional delay before these women
get married and become mothers.
If because of higher qualifications, like the A levels for men, the
NS stint is extended by six months, the delay in bearing children
would be further extended.
This could mean that when these women finally want to have
children, they could run into fertility problems associated with
conception at non-optimal ages, which they may not have encountered
a mere 12 months earlier.
Singapore could be faced with a worsening baby shortage.
Looking at the current situation, we do not have the critical mass
of population that would be able to absorb any delay in producing
of babies in favour of implementing national service for women, no
matter how fair it may seem.
MICHAEL LOH YIK MING
