Soldiers Mobilized for Civilian Support Increases 15 Times, Prompts Call for New Measures
The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (hereafter referred to as the Human Rights Commission) has recommended the establishment of a military disaster response system.
On the 4th, the Human Rights Commission suggested to the Minister of National Defense that “general civilian support” and “disaster civilian support” should be distinguished to prevent military personnel from being excessively mobilized for civilian support. They recommended revising the National Defense Disaster Management Directive, designating disaster response units, unifying the command system of units deployed at disaster sites, and establishing criteria for determining the appropriate range of civilian support by military personnel, the Commission revealed on the 10th.
They also recommended the preparation of specific safety manuals for disaster sites where military personnel are mobilized, conducting emergency rescue support capability assessments twice a year, and devising measures to prevent recurrence after examining the problems that arose in the disaster mobilization process in the unfortunate incident involving marine Corporal Chae.
The Human Rights Commission’s Military Human Rights Committee decided to start an ex officio investigation on the 25th of July last year, following the unfortunate incident involving Corporal Chae in the Marine Corps on the 18th of the same month.
The Human Rights Commission stated that during the same period, they received numerous complaints from military personnel mobilized at civilian support sites claiming unfair treatment.
According to the Human Rights Commission’s investigation, military-civilian support has continuously increased over the past ten years.
The number of military personnel mobilized for civilian support was 65,778 in 2013, but as of September 2022, it increased 15 times to 1,017,146.
Military forces were mobilized not only for natural disasters such as heavy snowfall, typhoons, and heavy rain but also for social disaster relief such as foot-and-mouth disease, avian influenza (AI), COVID-19, and even local government events.
Given that the basic mission of the military is to protect the people’s lives, bodies, and property from security crises, the Military Human Rights Committee has analyzed that there is a need to mobilize soldiers to overcome disaster crisis situations.
However, it pointed out that it is problematic to be indiscriminately mobilized for general projects at the request of local governments or for national policy projects unrelated to disasters beyond the delegation range of the Disaster and Safety Management Basic Act.
Moreover, the biggest problem is that there is no safety system for soldiers mobilized for civilian support.
Corporal Chae also died after being swept away by a rapid current while searching for a missing civilian during a downpour. At the time, the soldiers, including the deceased, were not even provided with the most basic life jackets.
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