Constitutional Court Rules "Payment of Allowances to Combat Soldiers in 'National Emergency' Constitutional"

Unanimous Opinion: "Vietnam War Veterans Have Already Received Other Allowances"

The Constitutional Court has ruled that the provision in the Military Compensation Act, which only pays the 'combat duty allowance' during national emergencies such as wartime or armed conflict, does not violate the Constitution.

Chief Justice Yoo Nam-seok of the Constitutional Court and the constitutional justices are seated in the justices' seats of the Grand Bench at the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 31st of last month, where the constitutional complaint case ruling is held.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 4th, the Constitutional Court announced a unanimous decision by all justices to uphold the constitutionality of Article 17 of the former Military Compensation Act in a constitutional review case. The provision under review states that "combat duty allowance shall be paid to those engaged in combat during national emergencies such as wartime or armed conflict, as prescribed by relevant regulations."

Applicant A, a veteran who participated in the Vietnam War, filed a lawsuit against the government in September 2019, demanding additional payments of special duty allowance, combat duty allowance, and overseas duty allowance. During the trial, A requested a constitutional review of the Military Compensation Act provision, which was dismissed, leading him to file a constitutional complaint.

A claimed that the government has an obligation to pay a portion of the overseas duty allowance received from the United States, which was not actually paid to the veterans who participated in the Vietnam War, along with delayed damages.

However, the Constitutional Court stated, "It is clear that the provision under review refers to a national emergency of the Republic of Korea at a level where combat has occurred or may occur, such as wartime or armed conflict," and found that it does not violate the principle of clarity.

Furthermore, the Court reasoned, "In a national emergency where the very existence of the state is at risk, soldiers engaged in combat may be more easily exposed to greater danger than soldiers engaged in combat under normal circumstances," and "there is a need to promptly overcome this situation by raising the morale of soldiers performing combat duties during national emergencies."

The Court added, "Special duty allowance or overseas deployment duty allowance was paid to Vietnam War veterans based on the provisions for special duty allowance for overseas deployed soldiers under other military compensation laws."

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