Demobilization - Wikipedia Jump to content Main menu Main menu move to sidebar hide Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Special pages Search Search Appearance Donate Create account Log in Personal tools Donate Create account Log in Contents move to sidebar hide (Top) 1 Definition 2 Two approaches to demobilization 3 Other uses 4 See also 5 References 6 Further reading Toggle the table of contents Demobilization 24 languages العربية Буряад Deutsch Español Eesti فارسی Français Bahasa Indonesia Italiano 日本語 Қазақша 한국어 Кыргызча Latviešu Polski Română Русский Shqip Српски / srpski ไทย Türkçe Українська Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча 中文 Edit links Article Talk English Read Edit View history Tools Tools move to sidebar hide Actions Read Edit View history General What links here Related changes Upload file Permanent link Page information Cite this page Get shortened URL Switch to legacy parser Appearance move to sidebar hide From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Decommissioning of military personnel "Demob" and similar words redirect here. For other uses, see Demob (disambiguation), Demobbed (disambiguation) and Demob Happy. Demob papers issued to a South African sailor in February 1946 Back page of demob papers issued to a South African sailor in February 1946 Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down members of a country's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and military force is no longer necessary. Peace-time militaries may demobilize batches of conscripts in a fairly predictable routine.[1] Militaries can also demobilize their members to become reservists. Demobilization is the opposite of mobilization, calling up forces for active military service. Forceful demobilization of a defeated enemy is called demilitarization. Definition[edit] The United Nations defines demobilization as "a multifaceted process that officially certifies an individual's change of status from being a member of a military grouping of some kind to being a civilian".[2] Persons undergoing demobilization are removed from the command and control of their armed force and group and the transformation from a military mindset to that of a civilian begins. Although combatants become civilians when they acquire their official discharge documents the mental connection and formal ties to their military command structure still exist. To prevent soldiers from rejoining their armed groups, important preparatory work must be done to ensure that combatants are ready to be reintegrated into society and capable of returning to their civilian lives. Civilians play an important role in supporting combatants to return to civilian life by exposing them to civilian lifestyles and mindsets that combat the rigid military mindset soldiers acquire during their time of service. Demobilization can be partial or complete depending on the number of units removed from the command structure. The process is often a symbolic and significant part of the peace process during which the conflicting sides acknowledge their intent to consolidate peace. The United Nations identifies demobilization as part of a three-pronged approach to conflict management.[3] This includes disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration to take combatants out of conflict situations as well as remove weapons and help former members of armed groups rejoin society. For example, in 1917 the gradual demobilization of Canadian troops from England fostered the Khaki University to facilitate the re-integration of the soldiers into Canadian civilian life.[4] In the final days of World War II the United States Armed Forces developed a demobilization plan which would discharge soldiers on the basis of a point system that favored length and certain types of service. The British armed forces were demobilized according to an "age-and-service" scheme.[5] The phrase demob happy refers to demobilization and is broadly applied to the feeling of relief at imminent release from a time-serving burden, such as a career.[6] In the Russian language, it is known as dembel and has become a certain tradition in the Soviet and post-Soviet Armed Forces. A United States equivalent is "short-timer's disease", comparable to "senioritis" among United States high school students. Two approaches to demobilization[edit] The United Nations Peacekeeping Operational Manual lists two different approaches to demobilization. These approaches are the semi-permanent demobilization sites (cantonment) or the mobile method which means demobilization at the sites where ex-combatants are gathered.[2] Other uses[edit] Residents greeting demobilized soldiers of the Red Army in Minsk, July 1945 In professional diving, demobilization is the dismantling, packing and transport back to storage of the diving spread, and where relevant, restoring the site to initial condition. Mobilization is the converse process.[7][8][9][10] See also[edit] Demobilisation of the British Armed Forces after the Second World War Demobilization of United States armed forces after World War II Demob suit Disarmament, demobilization and reintegration Military discharge Social history of soldiers and veterans in the United States References[edit] ↑ Finkelstein, David M.; Gunness, Kristen (26 March 2015) [2007]. Civil-military Relations in Today's China: Swimming in a New Sea. Routledge. p. https://books.google.com/books?id=8X6sBwAAQBAJ&pg=PT261. ISBN 9781317474340. Retrieved 16 March 2026. PLA conscripts are not career servicemen. They serve for a short period of time, after which they are simply demobilized. Each year the state Council and the PLA Central Military Commission jointly issue a 'Demobilization Circular' (Tuiwu tongzhi) governing the release from active duty of conscripts who have fulfilled their military obligations. This usually happens in connection with the annual selection of a new batch of conscripts. 1 2 "United Nations Operational Guide to the Integrated Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Standards" (PDF). United Nations Peacekeeping. 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-12-01. Retrieved 2022-05-21. ↑ "Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration". United Nations Peacekeeping. Archived from the original on 2022-05-21. Retrieved 2022-05-22. ↑ Henry Marshall Tory (September 1917) A Khaki University for Canadian Soldiers via Internet Archive ↑ See Alan Allport, Demobbed. Coming Home after the Second World War, Yale University Press, 2009. ↑ Demob ↑ "Dive Works Special Terms and Conditions" (PDF). diveworks.com.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 February 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2019. ↑ "Job title: Diving technician" (PDF). www.bluestreamoffshore.com. Retrieved 22 November 2019. [permanent dead link] ↑ OGP Diving Operations Subcommittee (June 2008). Diving Recommended Practice (PDF). Report No: 411 (Report). International Association of Oil & Gas Producers. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-02-26. Retrieved 2019-11-22. ↑ IMCA D 014: IMCA International Code of Practice for Offshore Diving (Rev. 2 ed.). International Marine Contractors Association. February 2014. [permanent dead link] Further reading[edit] E McGaughey (2018) "Will Robots Automate Your Job Away? Full Employment, Basic Income, and Economic Democracy", SSRN, part 3(2) Sparrow, John C. (1952) History of Personnel Demobilization in the United States, Department of the Army, 370 pages; online Authority control databases National Japan demobilizace (vojenství)</span"}]]}'Czech RepublicOther Encyclopedia of Modern Ukraine Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Demobilization&oldid=1343755113" Categories: Non-combat military operations Veterans' affairs Military veterans topics Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description is different from Wikidata All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from January 2024 Articles with permanently dead external links This page was last edited on 16 March 2026, at 04:56 (UTC). Page was rendered with Parsoid. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. 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