[Defense Brief Column] Why the Public Cannot Trust the Military

Three Weeks After Corporal Chae's Death, Only Internal Military Investigation Continues
Controversy Over "Self-Investigation" Grows, Fueling Distrust in the Military

It has been over three weeks since Marine Corps Corporal Chae Su-geun died in the line of duty. Immediately after Corporal Chae's death, the military launched an internal investigation, but there has been no progress. Instead, the controversy has only grown. Criticism such as "the limits of self-investigation" and "stagnant investigation" has emerged.

Last year, the Military Court Act was amended. Following the "Air Force Non-Commissioned Officer Sexual Assault Victim Death Case," it was mandated that civilian investigative agencies handle military death cases with criminal allegations. This was a measure to completely block attempts by the military to downplay or conceal incidents. However, the Ministry of National Defense transferred Corporal Chae's case to its direct investigation headquarters and decided to review the Marine Corps' investigation results. They insisted that the initial investigation must be conducted by the military.

The problem is that the military's initial investigation results serve only as reference materials during police investigations. The Ministry of National Defense claims this is to examine whether the allegations against the division commander and others are valid, but this explanation is unconvincing. As the Ministry delayed transferring the investigation, the dispute intensified. Former investigation team leader Park Jeong-hoon was booked for insubordination over whether the Minister of National Defense issued the transfer order, leading to a legal battle. During this process, Park also revealed that he received a text message from Shin Beom-cheol, Deputy Minister of National Defense, instructing to remove the division commander from the investigation, which was relayed from the Marine Corps commander.

The National Assembly also raised suspicions. Park Yong-jin, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated, "Is it because Division Commander Im Seong-geun was an administrative officer at the Lee Myung-bak administration's Blue House, and through connections made there with Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop and Kim Tae-hyo, the first deputy director of the National Security Office who lived in the same apartment as the president?" He further claimed, "Despite receiving multiple orders to exclude Division Commander Im from the allegations, the investigation team leader did not comply."

The Ministry of National Defense's directive on civil support operations is also problematic. The Ministry's Directive No. 906, "Civil Support Activity Work Directive," which provided guidelines for military personnel's activities in civil support, was abolished on May 26. The official reason was that its contents overlapped with other directives, reducing its necessity.

The issue is that the responsibility for civil support was also eliminated. The revised directive assigns safety accidents during civil support to the Ministry of National Defense's logistics management officer. The previous directive designated responsible departments separately for equipment and personnel, but now a single department must oversee and take responsibility for all. Due to the lack of detailed provisions, management of civil support is inevitably inadequate. In Corporal Chae's case, he entered the Naeseongcheon River in Yecheon, Gyeongbuk, formed a human chain with other soldiers to search for missing persons, and was swept away by a rapid current. It is known that he was not wearing a life jacket at the time of the accident, sparking controversy over the military's safety negligence.

Some criticize the Ministry of National Defense for not properly recognizing the pain of the bereaved family. On the 4th, the family conveyed to the Ministry's press corps, "We hope that a thorough investigation will be conducted, proper measures will be established and firmly implemented, so that even if commanders change over time, such incidents will never happen again." If the Ministry truly understands the family's pain, it should not focus on suppressing the expansion of the case but promptly transfer the investigation to the police for proper handling.

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