[2023 National Audit] Forgotten Late Sergeant Lee... Over 4,000 Military Sexual Crimes in 3 Years

Sex Crimes Increase Again After Air Force Sergeant Lee Incident
4,233 Sexual Offenses Occurred Within the Military in the Past 3 Years

It has been revealed that sexual crimes are increasing within military units. Although awareness of sexual crimes heightened after the 2021 incident in which Air Force Sergeant Lee Yeram was sexually harassed and subjected to secondary victimization by a male superior before taking her own life, related crimes have still not been eradicated. Calls are being made for effective countermeasures to be established.

According to the “Military Sexual Crime Disciplinary Status in the Last Three Years (2020 to June 2023)” submitted by the Ministry of National Defense to Song Gap-seok, a member of the National Assembly’s National Defense Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, there were 4,233 sexual crimes within the military. Sexual crimes increased from 1,181 cases in 2021, the year Sergeant Lee’s case occurred, to 1,205 cases the following year. By June of this year, 600 cases had already been reported, suggesting that the number of cases this year will be similar to last year’s if the trend continues.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Looking at the perpetrators of sexual crimes by rank, soldiers accounted for the largest portion at 64% (2,704 individuals). They were followed by non-commissioned officers at 20% (852 individuals), civilian employees at 6% (262 individuals), junior officers at 5% (206 individuals), field-grade officers at 4% (168 individuals), and one general officer.

The crime committed by the general officer was confirmed to involve Brigadier General A, a senior official at the Ministry of National Defense’s Defense Facilities Headquarters, who was suspended from duty and returned to his original unit in the Army after being accused of sexually harassing a subordinate. Brigadier General A is currently being prosecuted and is on trial.

Assemblyman Song pointed out, “Despite increased awareness of sexual crimes within the military following Sergeant Lee Yeram’s case, sexual crimes have increased, leading to criticism of the Ministry of National Defense’s ineffective measures.”

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