Swordsman Yamakawa Three Musketeers
On July 2, a retired comrade-in-arms was stopped by the staff when he was riding a train at Chongqing West Railway Station. Staff said priority access is only open to active-duty military personnel, not retired military personnel.
In this regard, the comrade-in-arms was dissatisfied and thought that he should also enjoy this treatment, so there was an argument, and only then did the video spread on the Internet.
Should veterans be prioritized? After the video was exposed, it sparked a huge controversy on the Internet.
Sentence|剑客山川
Picture: Datang
Edited by Jianping
There are two main opinions on this matter:
One is:
The retired military was a former soldier and should enjoy the priority of being a military member in accordance with the law, and this staff member should apologize to the retired soldier.
If there is a war, retired soldiers will be recalled, and they will be given priority to go to the battlefield, so they should also enjoy priority in the category of car travel in peacetime.
The legal basis for this is: Article 48 of the Law on the Protection of Veterans: People's governments at all levels shall adhere to the principle of superimposing universal benefits and preferential treatment, and on the basis of ensuring that retired servicemen enjoy inclusive policies and public services, they shall give preferential treatment in light of the contributions made during their active service and the actual situation of each locality.
▲The picture comes from the Internet
Article 52: Military medical institutions and public medical institutions shall provide preferential services for veterans seeking medical treatment, and give preferential treatment to veterans who participated in wars and disabled veterans.
Article 53: Retired servicemen shall enjoy preferential treatment in public transportation, culture and tourism on the basis of valid certificates such as retired servicemen's preferential treatment certificates, and the specific measures shall be formulated by the people's governments at the provincial level.
The other is:
Retired servicemen are no longer soldiers and cannot enjoy the preferential treatment of servicemen in accordance with the law.
Active-duty servicemen travel priority is so that they can complete various tasks faster, such as in case of emergency, active-duty servicemen can quickly buy tickets and get on the bus, without affecting the timely return to the team. Retired military personnel are retired, so don't grab priority resources.
The legal basis for this is:
Article 71 of the National Defense Law of the People's Republic of China, which stipulates that "servicemen shall be given priority according to law," stipulates that the term "servicemen" as used in this law refers to officers, non-commissioned officers, conscripts, and other personnel serving active duty in the Chinese People's Liberation Army.
Article 2 of the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of the Status and Rights and Interests of Military Personnel: "Military personnel" as used in this Law refers to officers, non-commissioned officers, conscripts and other personnel serving active duty in the Chinese People's Liberation Army.
So, what's right and who's wrong?
In fact, these two points of view involve a definition, that is, whether the "soldiers" in "military personnel are given priority according to law" include retired soldiers.
In everyday life, many people think that military personnel include active military and retired military personnel.
Some retired comrades-in-arms will also say in public: "Although I have been discharged from the army, I am still a soldier." ”
In fact, military refers specifically to active duty military personnel who are currently serving.
Even if you have military experience, as long as you retire from active service, you no longer belong to the "military", and when you call yourself a soldier, you must add the word "retired" in front of it.
Some people may say, isn't it just a title? Like a teacher who retires is not a teacher? A doctor is not a doctor when he retires? Therefore, even if a military is retired, it is still a soldier.
It sounds reasonable, but it doesn't make sense.
Because military personnel are a special group, there are regulations on the issue of determining the identity of military personnel.
According to the "Provisions on the Handling of Criminal Cases Involving the Military and Local Governments", "the status of a military member shall be acquired from the date of approval of enlistment and shall terminate on the date of approval of retirement from active service". In other words, the status of a military member is terminated on the day he is approved to retire from active duty. If the identity is terminated, it is natural that he cannot be called a soldier.
Without military status, it is natural that you cannot enjoy the "military priority according to law".
Let's take a look at the relevant regulations on railways:
In November 2018, the Ministry of Transport and the Logistics Support Department of the Central Military Commission issued the Notice (Jiao Yun Fa [2018] No. 145), which pointed out that the protection of the rights and interests of military personnel in the field of road passenger transport in accordance with the law is active duty soldiers, civilian personnel, disabled soldiers, retired military cadres and retired non-commissioned officers (hereinafter referred to as soldiers) holding valid certificates of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, the Chinese People's Armed Police Force and military cadets. Operators of national bus passenger stations and road passenger lines shall provide priority services to military personnel in the process of ticket purchase, security check, waiting, and boarding, and family members accompanying military personnel (in principle, no more than 2 people, and do not need to provide proof of relationship with the military themselves) can enjoy priority services together. The Notice will come into force on December 1, 2018 and will be valid for 5 years.
On November 23, 2023, the Ministry of Transport and the Logistics Support Department of the Central Military Commission issued an announcement on extending the validity period of the Notice on Matters Concerning the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Military Personnel in the Field of Road Passenger Transport in accordance with the Law (Jiao Yun Gui [2023] No. 5), which pointed out that the "Notice" will continue to be implemented after the expiration of the validity period.
It can be seen from the content of the "Notice" that the policy of giving priority to military personnel in accordance with the law is mainly aimed at active military personnel who are serving in the service, and does not include retired soldiers.
So, can veterans enjoy preferential treatment?
Of course!
Article 52 of the Law on the Protection of Retired Servicemen: Military medical institutions and public medical institutions shall provide preferential services for retired servicemen to seek medical treatment, and give preferential treatment to veterans who participated in the war and disabled veterans.
Article 53: Retired servicemen shall enjoy preferential treatment in public transportation, culture and tourism on the basis of valid certificates such as retired servicemen's preferential treatment certificates, and the specific measures shall be formulated by the people's governments at the provincial level.
It is not difficult to understand from the literal letter of the law that retired servicemen can enjoy preferential treatment such as medical treatment, transportation, and travel ticket purchase.
▲The picture comes from the Internet
However, we have also seen that it is only preferential treatment, not priority.
The difference between preferential treatment and priority shows the difference between military personnel and retired soldiers.
Moreover, a tail was left that "specific measures shall be formulated by the provincial people's government".
In recent years, many provinces and cities have introduced preferential policies for veterans, including free public transportation in the city, preferential treatment for medical treatment, and so on.
There are also some regions that have introduced priority services for veterans on the basis of giving priority to military personnel in accordance with the law.
For example, Qingdao Jiaodong Airport in Shandong Province has launched a priority service for retired soldiers. The airport has set up special green channels at check-in, security check, boarding and other workstations.
▲The picture comes from the Internet
At the same time, priority signs are designed and posted in conspicuous positions, and retired servicemen can enjoy priority services with their preferential treatment cards and invalids cards when they go through check-in and baggage check-in procedures.
Chongqing West Railway Station also has such regulations.
In March 2022, Chongqing Municipality issued the "Implementation Opinions of 25 Departments including the Chongqing Veterans Affairs Bureau on Strengthening the Preferential Treatment of Military Families, Veterans and Other Preferential Care Recipients", Article 41 of which stipulates:
Active-duty soldiers, retired servicemen, and "three subordinates" can enjoy priority in purchasing car (boat) tickets or check-in, security checks, and boarding (boat, aircraft) when taking trains (high-speed railways), ships, passenger shuttles, and civil airlines operating in China. Active-duty military personnel, disabled military personnel, and family members of the "three families" traveling with them can enjoy priority services together. (Responsible units: Municipal Transportation Bureau, Municipal Veterans Affairs Bureau, Chongqing Garrison District Political Work Bureau)
From this regulation, it can be seen that retired servicemen can use priority lanes at stations in Chongqing.
In fact, in recent years, whether it is an active military or a retired soldier, when using the right of priority, there will always be some people who question and do not understand.
As a result, many comrades-in-arms do not dare to show their certificates even though they have documents, and they can enjoy priority, but they give up their due rights and interests because they are afraid of people's fingers.
Active-duty servicemen are treated unfairly when they enjoy the "priority of servicemen in accordance with the law", and they can also rely on the law to safeguard their legitimate rights and interests.
However, because there is no corresponding legal provision, retired soldiers can only endure silently after their rights and interests are harmed.
Veterans are also the precious wealth of the motherland, and their dedication and dedication to the motherland and the people should not be forgotten, let alone ignored.
Personally, I believe that since there are relevant regulations, the relevant departments should strengthen the training and education of staff to ensure that they can correctly understand and implement the policy, and fully respect the rights and interests of retired soldiers.
Paying attention to retired soldiers is paying attention to active soldiers, because today's retired soldiers are the tomorrow of active soldiers!
In recent years, the issue of priority has mainly appeared in the group of veterans, on the one hand, the implementation of policies and regulations is not in place, and the second is the lack of publicity and explanation.
Another is that in many places, there is no clear boundary regarding the priority and preferential treatment of military personnel and retired military personnel.
In scope, military and retired military personnel are different. In terms of degree, priority and preferential treatment are also different.
Don't get confused!