KMA: "Classifying Resigning Residents as 'Active Duty Non-Selectees' is Clearly Unconstitutional... Filing Constitutional Complaint"

"Infringement of the Right to Pursue Happiness, Equality, and Freedom to Choose One's Occupation"

The medical community has filed a constitutional complaint against the Ministry of National Defense's revised directive that classifies resigning residents as 'active duty non-selectees' and requires them to wait for enlistment.

The medical community submitted a constitutional complaint petition to the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul, around 2 p.m. on the 10th. Korean Medical Association

The Korean Medical Association (KMA) announced this on the afternoon of the 10th during a regular briefing held at the KMA headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.

Earlier, in February, the Ministry of National Defense amended the "Directive on the Selection and Enlistment of Medical and Veterinary Officers," requiring medical officer candidates who are not selected as military doctors or public health doctors and are waiting for enlistment to be classified and managed as 'active duty non-selectees.'

Typically, the Ministry of National Defense selects 600 to 700 medical officer candidates annually as military doctors, while the remaining 200 to 300 are assigned to supplementary service and serve as public health doctors at local medical institutions.

However, due to the mass resignation of residents last year, the number of enlistment candidates this year has increased more than threefold, and the Ministry of National Defense plans to select military doctors or public health doctors sequentially over four years.

Regarding this, Kim Min-su, KMA Policy Director, stated, "The revised directive clearly violates the Constitution by infringing on the constitutional rights of resident medical officer candidates, including Article 10's right to pursue happiness, Article 11's right to equality, and Article 15's freedom to choose one's occupation. The resigning residents classified as active duty non-selectees for the current year have filed a constitutional complaint against the revised directive."

He added, "When and how a citizen fulfills their military service obligation is a very important matter in an individual's life and must be guaranteed through due process. However, this directive revision was carried out completely excluding the voices of residents and the medical community."

He emphasized, "The Ministry of National Defense claims it is adjusting manpower surplus, but resigning residents are now in a situation where, unlike the contents of their previously submitted service support forms, they cannot predict their enlistment timing, making training, employment, and opening private practices difficult."

Concerns were also raised that this measure could accelerate the culture of medical students enlisting as active duty general soldiers. The KMA stated, "This revised directive undermines the right to equality in the military service system and is a serious issue that shakes the lives and careers of individual medical officer candidates. We expect the Ministry of National Defense to pursue policies that comply with the legal framework and achieve social consensus, and the Constitutional Court to make a wise ruling to protect the fundamental rights of residents scheduled for enlistment."

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