When Others Quit Smoking, the Army Resumes [Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club]

(Provided by Asia Economy DB)

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The Army Training Center's consideration of allowing recruits to smoke during the training period, when smoking is currently prohibited, has sparked controversy over fairness and criticism that it contradicts the government's anti-smoking policy.

On the 29th, the Army stated, "The Army Training Center is seeking improvement measures for a barracks culture that guarantees soldiers' basic rights and human rights, and as part of this, the issue of whether recruits can smoke has been proposed and is currently under review."

This measure is said to be an extension of the response to recent controversies over the infringement of recruits' basic rights due to excessive quarantine measures against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

The Army's recruit training guidelines clearly state that "smoking is actively discouraged." However, it also stipulates that "under the judgment of general officers, designated times and places for smoking may be allowed," so smoking is permitted in some recruit training battalions. Currently, among the 22 recruit training battalions operated by the Army, 11 allow recruits to smoke. This is the reason for the fairness controversy regarding smoking.

Until now, the Ministry of National Defense has widely promoted the decrease in smoking rates among military personnel as an effect of military life. When the Ministry announced the results of the "2019 Military Personnel Smoking Survey" last year, it reported that the overall smoking rate among military personnel was 40.7%, a 0.3 percentage point decrease from 41.0% in 2018.

The Ministry explained that among smokers, 87.8% started smoking before enlisting in the military, and only 9.5% responded that they started smoking after enlistment, attributing this to the effects of creating a smoke-free environment in line with national anti-smoking policies, such as abolishing duty-free cigarettes and banning cigarette advertisements within units.

A military official said, "Instead of preparing temporary patch-up measures whenever problems arise within the military, a mid- to long-term plan should be established."

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