Air Force to Triple Number of Sexual Harassment Specialized Counselors

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The Air Force plans to increase the number of sexual harassment specialist counselors from the current 9 per region to 28, tripling the number, and expand their deployment to units at the brigadier general level and above.

On the 14th, during the Air Force's national audit report at the National Defense Committee of the National Assembly held at Gyeryongdae in Gyeryong City, Chungnam Province, the Air Force announced that the dedicated positions for the Gender Equality Officer (Grade 7, Administrative) will also increase from 15 to 27, and a system to prevent secondary damage to sexual violence victims will be established.

The Air Force will also issue a 'Secondary Damage Prevention' notice to perpetrators of sexual violence. This is intended to minimize the possibility of secondary damage in advance, and violations are expected to be met with severe disciplinary action. This measure follows calls for more fundamental countermeasures to prevent sexual violence and secondary damage, prompted by the death of the late Sergeant Lee Yeram in May.

Air Force Chief of Staff Park In-ho said in his opening remarks at the audit, "Once again, I pray for the repose of the deceased and express my deepest apologies and condolences to the bereaved family," adding, "We will do our best to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again through change and innovation, striving to become a 'rightful Air Force that protects the human rights and daily lives of comrades' and a 'strong Air Force that defends the skies and space of the Republic of Korea.'"

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.