ED Lack of discipline, vigilance
Military slammed for another security lapse
An unidentified South Korean was found to have crossed the heavily fortified border into North Korea, raising concerns about the military's security lapse. This case has demonstrated that there is a big hole in the military's readiness posture.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Sunday that the crossing took place on Saturday evening. The person was detected by surveillance equipment in the eastern part of the Demilitarized Zone, which bisects the two Koreas, at 6:40 p.m., on New Year's Day.
But the military had not noticed the person until 9:20 p.m. when a soldier watching the CCTV replayed the recorded footage. Then it carried out a search operation and confirmed that the person crossed the military demarcation line at around 10:40 p.m.
It is dumbfounding to know that the border guard failed to recognize the person's move instantly which was caught on the surveillance camera. More worrisome is that such border crossings have happened again and again in recent years. Our military cannot avoid criticism for repeated security lapses.
The JCS has yet to identify the person who is presumed to be a civilian. It sent a notice to the North through a military hotline asking for the defector's protection. The case occurred after a South Koran fishery official was shot dead by North Korean troops after he went missing near the maritime border in the West Sea in September 2020. The incident sparked criticism for the brutal killing which the North said was in line with its national emergency declared against COVID-19.
The Moon Jae-in administration needs to prevent such a tragedy from happening again, regardless of the reason the person fled to the North. It should also make all-out efforts to boost discipline among service members and tighten the surveillance network in frontline regions to ensure our national security.
The military has already taken flak for a series of sexual harassment and assaults on female members. A lack of discipline on the part of soldiers is to blame for various types of misdeeds and mishaps. Repeated surveillance failures in border areas have usually been caused by negligence and slackened vigilance. In July 2020, a North Korean, who escaped to the South three years ago, swam back to the North.
The military has also come under fire for not detecting North Koreans crossing the border into the South. In February 2021, a North Korean man swam across the eastern maritime border. At the time, our soldiers failed to spot the man although he was captured on surveillance cameras. In November 2020, a North Korean civilian was captured 14 hours after jumping over barbed wire fences to cross the inter-Korean border.
The government has modernized surveillance equipment to boost military preparedness. But state-of-the-art technology is of no use if soldiers remain negligent. It is time to take radical measures to boost the military's discipline and vigilance.