By now, most people in South Korea know the national team’s victory over Japan in the Asian Games football tournament secured not just the gold medal, but also an exemption from military service for Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min. The win also brought global attention to a simmering social and political issue in South Korea.
All male South Koreans aged 18 to 35 undertake mandatory military service. Most start in their early 20s, disrupting tertiary education or postponing career entry. For most, mandatory military service includes five weeks of boot camp, and around two years of mind-numbing battalion boredom, indoctrination, and short bouts of intense training. Understandably, few want to do military service.
Son Heung Min during the gold medal match between South Korea and Japan at the Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia. (Photo: Allsport via Getty)
At 72 Years Old, Katusa Program Continues To Strengthen Rok U.s. Alliance
South Korea is a country going through momentous social change. What commenced with economic development in the 1980s, and continued with political development in the 1990s, continued into the 2000s with social change. But since the 2010s, youth unemployment, economic instability, gender inequality, corruption and social immobility has led to growing social dissatisfaction with the pace of this change.
Critics argue South Korea’s mandatory military service system is more likely to train recruits in make-up and skin care, than it is to prepare them to defend the country.
Mandatory military service is an ever-recurring source of social dissatisfaction. Controversies include corruption, easier service conditions for celebrities, dual national service obligations, bullying, and an outdated criteria for exemptions.
Rigorous Training, High Readiness Continue In Korea, General Says > U.s. Department Of Defense > Defense Department News
Exemptions to military service are the latest controversy. There are currently no exemptions for conscientious objection, something the government is looking into after a June 2018 Constitutional Court decision required the government to provide alternatives forms of national service. Exemptions for having excessive tattoos, being overweight, underweight, having certain medical conditions, holding foreign citizenship and/or residency, being of non-Korean ethnicity, and studying in fields deemed of national importance, have all been restricted.
Exemptions are given to high-achieving sports figures, artists, classical musicians and dancers, but controversially, not to high-achieving pop culture stars, actors or film-makers.
Mandatory military service historically serves two broad aims: national security and nation building. It can act as an important force multiplier in periods of national emergency, and can equally act as an important social equalizer, reinforcing the individual’s connection to the nation and society. For many South Koreans, its current form does not fully reflect either of these aims. Debate is emotional and muddied by nationalist rhetoric and political ideology.
South Korea's Misplaced Military Inferiority Complex
On one side are those who see mandatory military service as a bulwark. It is seen as essential in the context of North Korean contingencies, ranging from invasion to collapse. Equally, it is seen as essential in the context of the fraught geopolitical situation amid US interests, Japan, China and Russia.
Some also see mandatory military service as a bulwark supporting South Korean traditions and society. It encourages social connection, conformity, hierarchy, and a shared sense of national pride. Among those having completed their service, popular sentiment has it that the experience “makes boys into men” – even arguing that it’s essential to understand and survive South Korea’s work and corporate culture.
On the other side are those who believe that the current mandatory military service is an obstruction. It is seen as outdated and ineffective in the context of national security. Countries facing similarly fraught geopolitical situations do not restrict service to just one half of the population and allow exemptions for conscientious objection. All Israeli citizens undertake mandatory military service, with females serving around two years, and there are stipulated exemptions for religious students.
Korean Support For U.s. Troops Remains High Despite Upcoming Trump Kim Summit
Critics argue South Korea’s mandatory military service system is more likely to train recruits in make-up and skin care than it is to prepare them to defend the country. Others see mandatory military service as an obstacle to transforming South Korean society. It discourages diversity and inclusion, further marginalizes the socially estranged, and above all, buttresses entrenched gender inequality.
Reforming South Korea’s military service system is a political can of worms with few clear options. Abandoning mandatory military service in favour of an expanded volunteer professional service would serve national security aims, but at the same time, would not serve nation building aims. Restructuring military service into a non-compulsory, better-paid, reserve service would serve both national security and nation building aims, but would potentially reinforce social and economic inequalities. Restructuring mandatory military service into a modern institution to strengthen diversity and push gender equality would serve nation building aims, but would potentially neglect national security aims.
The Moon Jae-in administration currently plans to reduce mandatory military service to 18 months. In face of recent events, it’s also promised to review the military service exemption system. Both plans are already attracting controversy, and there’s little political will to push for further reform.
If The Problem Becomes More Serious”: South Korea Talks Going Nuclear
With declining birth rates; an ever-present, albeit momentarily reduced North Korean threat; and smoldering social dissatisfaction regarding its management; mandatory military service will remain a simmering social and political issue for South Korea – but not for Tottenham Hotspur or Son Heung-min.The mandatory military service in South Korea is a hot topic as K-pop singer J-Hope became the second member of the boy band BTS to enlist on April 18, 2023. Why is military service mandatory in South Korea? Here is a look at the reasons for its existence, history, and controversies.
The mandatory military service in South Korea has suddenly become one of the hot topics of conversation as K-pop singer and BTS member Jung Ho-seok, more popular by his stage-name J-Hope, became the second member of the boy band to enter the mandatory military service on Tuesday (April 18). In December last year, Kim Seok-jin or Jin, the eldest of the group at 30, had become the first BTS member to enlist as an active duty soldier. Earlier in June 2022, BTS had announced that owing to upcoming conscriptions of band members, the group will go on a hiatus. The members will eventually reunite in 2025. Jin and J-Hope are only two of the personalities in the East Asian country who have had to put their successful professions on hold to fulfill their mandatory military service.
In South Korea, military service of 18 to 21 months is compulsory for physically fit men aged between 18 and 35, though there have been rare exemptions. So how did military service come to be mandatory in South Korea? When did it come into existence? We answer your every question.
Bts Is Joining The Military Here's How Much It Will Cost South Korea
After Japanese surrendered at the end of World War II, Korea was divided into two occupation zones, with the northern part occupied by Soviet Union and the southern part occupied by the United States. The two world powers were unable to come to agreement on a joint trusteeship, and the two Koreas as they currently stand came into being: the Soviet-aligned Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the America-aligned FNirst Republic of Korea, with both claiming the full control of the peninsula. These are what we know today as North Korea and South Korea, respectively.
Conscription was enshrined in the South Korean constitution right from the beginning. Article 39 reads, All citizens shall have the duty of national defence under the conditions as prescribed by Act. But it was only in 1957 that it became mandatory.
The duration of the service was initially set at 30 months but has since been reduced to between 18 and 21 months. Since its establishment, mandatory military service has been a constant and integral aspect of Korean society. It was partly borne out of the need to defend against North Korean aggression as the war between the two countries is technically still going on.
South Korea's Military Discharges Its First Transgender Soldier
There have been several changes to the criteria for exemption or deferment from military service over the years. Sole breadwinners of their family or those with exceptional talents in certain areas, such as sports or music, may be exempted or have their service period shortened.
Mandatory military service is popularly considered a rite of passage for young men in South Korea and has played a crucial role in maintaining the country's national defence.
After turning 19 years old according to the Korean age system (read it up, it's rather interesting), all South Korean men are required to undergo a thorough medical examination to determine their eligibility for military service. The results of the exam can lead to three possible outcomes. If the individual is deemed healthy, they are required to serve in the armed forces. Those who are found not to be in good physical condition are considered unsuitable for military service and may instead perform civil service in public institutions. Finally, individuals who have physical or psychological conditions that prevent them from serving in any capacity may be exempted from service altogether.
North Korea: Profile Of A Nation That Riles, Baffles Rest Of World
There are opponents of South Korean conscription. There have been exemptions, and not all of them have had to do with the person not being fit to serve. The exemption system was installed in 1973 by then-president Park Chung-hee, aimed at artists and athletes with considerable achievements. Son Heung-min, a South Korean footballer playing with Tottenham Hotspur, was exempted from the full service after the national team won
0 komentar
Posting Komentar