By It is good to see that reforms are being made to go after draft dodgers who avoid their mandatory military service with the ROK Army:
Those who have served jail time for using deception to avoid military service will still have to join the armed services under a tougher conscription rule to take effect next year, the military recruitment agency said Friday.
Also starting from next year, the military will no longer randomly select recruits from boot camps to serve as combat police.
The Military Manpower Administration on Friday put on public notice a set of revision bills on these and other issues. The revision is aimed at enhancing the military recruitment system and toughening conscription rules, officials said.
Under the current law, those who have served a jail term of 18 months or more for any criminal conviction cannot join the military. But the revision stipulates that draft dodgers will have to fufil their military duties after finishing their term in prison.
To address complaints from those who joined the combat police irrespective of their wishes to work as active-duty military personnel, the MMA will scrap the system of randomly choosing police staff from among military recruits, officials said.
Each year, some 3,700 recruits at military boot camps are picked to join the combat police. Some 270,000 soldiers are conscripted each year to maintain the 650,000-strong military, mainly serving as a deterrent to North Korea.
The MMA will also allow those with only an elementary school education to serve in the military.
To protect the “socially vulnerable,” the government has exempted them from military service. But critics have said that this measure is discriminatory as there are many who are fully capable of serving in the military.
A revision bill also seeks to give the MMA the right to investigate public doctors who are serving in designated towns instead of joining the armed forces. The Health Ministry has so far taken charge of them. [Korea Herald]
She hasn’t seen...
4:35 am on August 23rd, 2011 1
Did they really think this through?
I’m trying to imagine what kinds of crimes a pre-conscription, 17~19 year old kid might be sentenced to 18 months or more in prison for in Korea. I can only think of extreme violence, severe sexual assaults or some other very serious anti-social incidents. Then considering all the chronic bullying and hazing of young recruits that still hasn’t been resolved, and plus they are considering sending in the “socially vulnerable”?
Exactly what problem do they think they are addressing?
6:21 am on August 23rd, 2011 2
“The MMA will also allow those with only an elementary school education to serve in the military.”
I suppose we won’t have to put up with statements about our dumb soldiers anymore. They ought to send some of those elementary educated Korean soldiers to Iraq and film it/make a movie(comedy) about it. Or, call it Korean reality TV.
7:11 am on August 23rd, 2011 3
If you refuse to serve – you go to prison.
Now it sounds like – if you refuse to serve – you go to prison. And after you are released, you are going to serve anyway.
8:00 am on August 23rd, 2011 4
“I’m trying to imagine what kinds of crimes a pre-conscription, 17~19 year old kid might be sentenced to 18 months or more in prison for in Korea.”
You don’t have to imagine.
http://rokdrop.com/2011/07/21/wtf/
3:59 am on August 24th, 2011 5
“The MMA will also allow those with only an elementary school education to serve in the military.”
I hope they’ll force them to go to class to learn to read and write, and do nothing else, during their 2 years of service.
7:28 pm on August 25th, 2011 6
Got a letter in the mail.
Go to war or go to jail… and then go to war.