[Yang Nak-gyu's Defense Club] 189 Refusals to Enlist... How Will Alternative Service Be Handled?

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[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] A review for the transfer of 189 conscientious objectors to alternative service will be conducted. Following the first plenary session held on the 15th, which included 35 individuals acquitted by the court, attention is focused on whether additional transfers to alternative service will be approved.

The Alternative Service Review Committee (hereafter the Review Committee) announced on the 29th that it will hold a second plenary session in the afternoon to review 189 applicants for alternative service who were acquitted in related lawsuits. Since the acquittals were confirmed by the Supreme Court, procedures such as fact-finding will be omitted during the review.

If these individuals are approved for alternative service, they will be enlisted as alternative service personnel and serve in correctional facilities under the Ministry of Justice for 36 months, performing auxiliary duties such as meal service, health and hygiene, and facility management while living in dormitory-style quarters. The service period will be determined considering the date of transfer, age, and personal preference.

Alternative service is a newly introduced military service type since the founding of the armed forces. It was established after the Constitutional Court ruled in 2018 that Article 5 of the Military Service Act, which defines types of military service, was "unconstitutional." In December of last year, the National Assembly passed the "Act on the Transfer and Service of Alternative Service," providing a legal basis. Accordingly, the military service types, which were previously divided into five categories (active duty, reserve, supplementary service, military service preparation, wartime labor service), have been reorganized into a six-type system including alternative service. The Military Service Act defines alternative service personnel as "those obligated to fulfill military service who, due to freedom of conscience guaranteed by the Constitution, perform or are obligated to perform military service in place of active duty, supplementary service, or reserve service."

Alternative service personnel serve in correctional facilities under a "dormitory work" system similar to active duty soldiers. Duties such as meal service, supplies, health and hygiene, and facility management in correctional facilities are demanding. Most notably, compared to the Army soldier service period (18 months for those enlisted from June this year), alternative service personnel must serve exactly twice as long. Even after completing 36 months of service and discharge, obligations remain. According to related laws, alternative service personnel must perform "reserve alternative service" from 1 to 8 years after discharge, which replaces the usual reserve training involving shooting practice.

From an equity perspective, alternative service personnel will receive treatment equivalent to active duty soldiers, including monthly pay and leave. As of this year, active duty soldiers receive monthly pay according to rank: ΔSergeant 540,900 KRW ΔCorporal 488,200 KRW ΔPrivate First Class 441,700 KRW ΔPrivate 408,100 KRW. Leave days are also granted at the same rate as active duty Army soldiers, with 1.33 days of annual leave per month of service.

Meanwhile, prior to the plenary session, the Review Committee opened an office at Finance Tower in Seo-gu, Daejeon on the same day. Attendees included Kim Byung-joo, a member of the Democratic Party, Mo Jong-hwa, Commissioner of the Military Manpower Administration, Lee Nam-woo, Director of Personnel Welfare at the Ministry of National Defense, and members of the Review Committee. Jin Seok-yong, Chair of the Review Committee, stated, "We will protect the human rights of minorities through rational review and fair judgment while harmonizing with military service fulfillment."

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