Reduce Corruption Risks in Defense Personnel: Government Defense Integrity Index Framework

In the Government Defense Integrity Index (GDI) 2020 Taiwan national assessment report, Taiwan overall received a good rating of Band “B” (low corruption risk). Among the five major aspects of the assessment, personnel corruption risk received a Band “A” rating. According to (Pyman in Tackling Defense Corruption. Ethical Dilemmas in the Global Defense Industry, 259, 2023), the government can improve its military integrity using GDI evaluation results to compare with better-performing countries and to improve our relatively weak areas accordingly. In this chapter, I provide specific solutions to the potential risks of corruption among the personnel of the Ministry of National Defense, especially the protection of whistleblowers in the national military, the verification of important and sensitive officials, and the selection and appointment of middle- and high-level military officials and civil servants. The objectivity of promotions is a key point that can be strengthened in the short term. Based on this, not only can Taiwan strive for good GDI evaluation results in 2025, but it can also improve the substantive level of national defense integrity, which is also the crucial contribution of this chapter.