Military Manpower Administration's Mistake Causes 'Bochungyeok to Serve Active Duty'

Among the 2 people judged with errors, 1 has already been discharged before the term ended

It has been revealed that there are two more young men who should have been classified as Grade 4 supplementary service during their physical examination but were mistakenly classified as active duty by the Military Manpower Administration.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 19th, the Military Manpower Administration announced that as a result of a second full-scale investigation into errors in body mass index (BMI; weight divided by the square of height) assessments during physical examinations before enlistment from 2016 to April this year, two additional cases were confirmed where individuals eligible for Grade 4 supplementary service were mistakenly classified as active duty soldiers, bringing the total to six.

Among the two additionally confirmed cases, one individual was awaiting active duty enlistment and has been reclassified as supplementary service, while the other has already completed active duty discharge and will be managed as a reservist. The Military Manpower Administration explained the error to the conscripts and their parents, apologized, and provided guidance on necessary matters. A representative from the Military Manpower Administration stated, "We will regularly review the examination procedures to prevent such cases from occurring again."

The Military Manpower Administration is considering disciplinary actions against the related staff. On the 9th, the Administration had announced that the first full-scale investigation into BMI assessment errors found that four individuals were mistakenly classified as active duty instead of supplementary service. Among these four, one has already been discharged, and another is expected to complete discharge in September.

Additionally, one individual was reclassified as supplementary service after an error was identified at the Army Recruit Training Center in May, and the last individual was corrected to supplementary service while awaiting active duty enlistment.

According to the "Regulations on Physical Examinations for Military Service Classification," implemented by the Ministry of National Defense since February 2021, the BMI criteria for Grade 4 supplementary service classification are "below 16 or above 35." For example, for a height of 175 cm, the overweight threshold for Grade 4 classification is 108 kg, and the underweight threshold is 48 kg.

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