Hazing in the Republic of Korea Armed Forces refers to the widespread hazing and bullying carried out among military personnel, often to conscripts and junior members in South Korea. Hazing has been enforced and encouraged mainly under the pretext of establishing military discipline and hierarchy. Hazing has resulted in a large number of fragging, shooting spree and suicide cases; such cases of suicide are referred to as non-combat casualties by the military.[1]
Such hazing has ranged from physical violence to malicious harassment, sexual violence, verbal abuse, to other forms of abuse, with some even resulting in death. Other forms of hazing have also included being beaten with a heated object[2] and being forced to eat bugs.[3] Such hazing in the South Korean military has led to numerous major incidents, including a series of suicides and gun shootings.[4] [5]
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces originates from the Korean Liberation Army, formed in response to Japanese occupation and attempts at colonization during World War II. The Ministry of National Defense (South Korea) specifies the roots of its armed forces as the Korean Liberation Army, which organized to liberate Korea from Japanese colonial rule during WWII. However, in the process of establishing the Korean Army under the command of the U.S. military government after liberation from Japanese colonial rule, military generals from Manchukuo Imperial Army and Japanese Army were at the center of the Korean Army.[6] As such, the Japanese military culture was forced onto Korean military culture; normalizing beating, other forms of physical abuse, a strict ranking culture and hierarchy system, and an emphasis on mental perseverance by enduring harsh behavior. The same culture and values have remained as remnants of the Japanese occupation of Korea.[7]
In addition, the system of conscription in South Korea which requires male citizens between the ages of 18 and 28 to perform compulsory military service, a lack of transparency from the South Korean military, and a larger culture of hierarchal abuse continue to perpetuate hazing in the South Korean military.[8]
Critics have also noted that LGBT South Korean soldiers are particularly targeted and vulnerable to hazing and extreme abuse during conscription.[9]
About 60 percent of the deaths in the South Korean military are suicides each year.[10] According to the research, it has been confirmed that severe beatings, physical abuse, verbal abuse, and sexual violence have significant effects on the suicidal impulse of the respondent.[11]
The following data is an annual comparison of total deaths and suicides in the military from 1994 to 2019.[12]
| 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | ||
| Total death | 343 | 416 | 330 | 359 | 273 | 248 | 230 | 182 | 164 | 158 | 150 | 135 | 124 | 128 | 121 | 134 | 113 | 129 | 143 | 111 | 117 | 101 | 93 | 81 | 75 | 86 | 86 | |
| Suicide | 129 | 155 | 100 | 103 | 92 | 102 | 101 | 82 | 66 | 79 | 69 | 67 | 64 | 77 | 80 | 75 | 81 | 82 | 97 | 72 | 79 | 67 | 57 | 54 | 51 | 56 | 62 |
While the true cause of such high suicide rates among South Korean military soldiers have been debated, research has shown that hazing, anger, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation were positively linked and that hazing is a significant predictor of high levels of anger and depressive symptoms.[13] Others have also argued that rather than the isolation of conscription into the military, a culture of hierarchy in the military and senior soldiers abusing their power are the cause of high suicide rates among South Korean military soldiers.[14]
South Korea's Defense Ministry issued a decree in 2011 to root out hazing in the South Korean military.[15] To ensure anonymous reporting, the agency also provides a service called Defense Help Call to receive reports of all possible crimes and violence that could lead to a suicide.[16] The South Korean government also established a military human rights center to further ensure the human rights of South Korean military soldiers.[17]
Recently, the South Korean government is preparing a policy to lower conscription standards for mental and physical conditions that would previously be considered exempt, as it fears that the nation's low birthrate will lead to fewer conscripts; South Korea had the lowest fertility rate in the world in 2020 and 2021.[18] However, experts warn such actions will eventually lead to even wider problems by recruiting personnel who would not be able to adapt to the closed military.[19]
Since 80% of Korean men are conscripted soldiers[20] and as hazing is common in South Korean culture, there have been many references and discussions in South Korean popular culture. Depictions of hazing and a larger culture of abuse and authority in the South Korean military have been presented through films, TV shows, animations, webtoons, and reality TV.
| Title | Media type | Year | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Film | 2005 | A South Korean drama film directed by Yoon Jong-bin which depict his own painful experiences of compulsory military service through the narrative of three young men in the South Korean military. | ||
| Window | Animated Short | 2012 | A short cartoon of Choi Kyu-seok and Yeon Sang-ho in a human rights cartoon book called 사이시옷. It deals with the abuse, beatings and torture issues that occur in the military. | |
| TV | 2012 | A humorous drama about a Korean barracks. | ||
| Webtoon | N/A | A webtoon about harsh hazing in conscript policemen in the mid-200s. | ||
| 이하동문입니다. | Film | N/A | A film produced by the Army Headquarters of the Republic of Korea Army. Although there is a military-made one, there is a scene in which he assaulted a senior soldier in protest of the beating and prevented him from abusing his successor after being imprisoned. | |
| Real Man | TV | 2013-2016 | A South Korean variety show featuring eight male celebrities as they experience life in the military, which is mandatory for all mentally sound and able-bodied Korean men for two years. | |
| Real Man 300 | TV | 2018-2019 | A South Korean reality program featuring male and female celebrities as they experience life in the military. It is a spin-off of reality program Real Man which had ended in 2016. | |
| D.P. | TV | 2021 | A Netflix Original series adapted from the webtoon of the same name by Kim Bo-Tong, follows a newly conscripted South Korean soldier in his experience of military life and subsequent recruitment into "D.P." a.k.a the Deserter Pursuit unit which is responsible for tracking and bringing back deserters. |