At present, the military service law is not suitable for special circumstances such as Hong Kong, so there is no conscription system in Hong Kong at present.

Chen Bingde, former chief of general staff of the PLA, said for the first time that Hong Kong people are welcome to join the PLA. However, before conscription in Hong Kong, we must first solve the legal problems such as how the mainland's military service law is applied in Hong Kong.

Xu Guangyu, retired Major General of the China People's Liberation Army, said that it was only a matter of time before the China People's Liberation Army stationed in Hong Kong. He suggested that Hong Kong people can serve in Hong Kong before being sent to other regions.

Chen Bingde said in an interview with Hong Kong media that Hong Kong people are welcome to join the army. This is 1997, after the return of Hong Kong, senior officers of the PLA approved Hong Kong people to join the army for the first time.

Qi Jianguo, former assistant to the chief of staff, said that if the Hong Kong government solved the legal problems, it would be feasible for Hong Kong people to join the army.

A survey conducted by the University of Hong Kong in April this year showed that 52% of the respondents were "satisfied" or "very satisfied" with the performance of the troops stationed in Hong Kong. However, in a similar survey in July 1997, the satisfaction rate was only 36%.

According to the military service law, all male citizens in China can join the army and are obliged to serve if necessary. But this law does not apply to Hong Kong.

Yao Jianguo, a professor at China University of Political Science and Law, said that a feasible way to solve the legal obstacles is for the Hong Kong government to propose to the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) that the Military Service Law be added to the Basic Law, which is a national law that can be implemented in Hong Kong.

Gary Lee, a China military expert living in London, said that a Hong Kong soldier must be allowed to serve in Hong Kong-this is very different from the way of conscription and dispatch in the mainland.

He said, "I can't imagine what it would be like for Hong Kong people accustomed to freedom and Hong Kong lifestyle to go to Inner Mongolia to serve with a large number of soldiers from rural areas."

"The People's Liberation Army has always been good at disciplining stubborn teenagers in rural areas into qualified soldiers-recruits are generally sent to places far from home, they are deliberately taken away from the comfortable environment, and sometimes they will get economic subsidies when they go to deserts and other difficult areas. It is hard to imagine how this applies to soldiers recruited from Hong Kong. "

Gary Lee said that a reserve Hong Kong force could be stationed in the local area to support the rotation of PLA troops from Guangdong in Hong Kong.