Earlier quoted context omitted.
For Switzerland that position may be tenable, but not for Taiwan. I fear that there could be a war within the lifetime of my potential future children, and I want nothing to do with it. Many other students in the Engineering department of Lancaster University, where I studied, went to work for BAE Systems, a defence contractor and major local employer. I joined protest marches against them. I'm still involved in acti…
Your points about the harm mandatory conscription inflicts upon citizens are valid. And I agree that if you're against war, you should not voluntarily go work for a defense contractor. But i think if you're drafted the calculus is different. Would you conscientiously object to paying taxes in a country fighting a war? How is mandatory non-combat service (say kitchen work) different from funding the military via taxes…
Draftees, even in non-combat roles, often have to explain their service to future governments. Visas can be denied for many reasons, including that. My US visa conversion from J1 to F1 was denied because I was too poor, not having $40k in my own bank account at age 19, but the visa could've be been denied for many other reasons such as political differences: "communism", "terrorism".