By Kim Hyo-jin
The main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) plans to propose a bill by next week aimed at treating corruption in the defense industry as a criminal act benefiting the enemy, a lawmaker said Monday.
Should it pass as planned, people in the defense industry involved in corruption scandals may face the death penalty as a maximum punishment.
“We should take it seriously that defective military supplies such as bulletproof jackets could inflict fatal damage in a wartime situation,” said Rep. Byun Jae-ill, referring to a recent corruption scandal in which military officials signed a deal with a defense contractor that produced flak jackets that were not bulletproof in exchange for cash.
“It is possible to apply the crime of benefiting the enemy to those involved in corrupt military deals as we can view their consequences in the context of a wartime situation.”
The legislative move seeks to revise the Military Criminal Act to be applied to military officials, civilians or private firms involved in crooked defense procurement deals.
Military officials can only be convicted under the Military Criminal Act Article 80, which mandates punishment of a person who, by negligence in the performance of duties or gross negligence, commits the crime of divulging military secrets. The penalties are either imprisonment for up to three years or a 7 million won fine.
Byun said the party’s legislative move would seek to add the phrase, “a person or a defense contractor that undermines the nation’s defense” in the article to include “acts benefiting the enemy,” so that they will face tougher punishment.
Article 14 of the Military Criminal Act states that a person who commits any act benefiting the enemy shall be sentenced to death, or imprisonment with hard labor from five years to an indefinite term.
The move illustrates the party’s will to uproot rampant corruption and irregularities in the defense industry by strengthening punishment, according to the MPK.
Enabling a death sentence even goes against the party’s platform ― which stipulates the abolition of capital punishment. Byun’s office said the contradiction however has yet to be looked into.
The party pledged to devise policies to root out defense corruption during the campaign for the April 13 general election.
It came after shady dealings between the military and the defense industry came to light over the past year.
A special investigation team made up of government and military officials, and prosecutors found irregular deals related to the supply of parts for military vehicles and body armor which amounted to about 980 billion won. Forty-one high-level military officials and 74 civilians were prosecuted.