Calls growing for alternative service

Civic group members call for a revision of the law that punishes conscientious objectors who refuse military service, during a press briefing in front of the Constitutional Court building in Seoul, Thursday. / Yonhap

Constitutionality discussed on conscientious objector issue

By Lee Kyung-min

Kim, 33, is in Cheongsong Prison in North Gyeongsang Province. He did not commit a serious crime such as killing someone. Rather, he was put behind bars because he does not want to hold guns that may kill people.

He is a Jehovah’s Witness, a religion that forbids believers holding firearms. And because he refused to serve in the military due to that religion, he was sentenced to 18 months in jail.

Besides Kim, 706 other conscientious objectors are serving sentences in 43 prisons nationwide for similar reasons, and most are Jehovah’s Witnesses, according to lawyer Oh Du-jin, who represents Kim.

Under the law, all able-bodied men age 18 or older are subject to compulsory 22-month military service. Those who fail to do so without legitimate excuses can be jailed for up to three years, but they are usually sentenced to 18 months. An average of 600 people are jailed each year.

Believers like Kim and human rights groups have long claimed that the law fails to recognize an individual’s basic freedom and have called for alternative service. Supporters of the law say it is important to impose fair conscription to maintain the security of a nation that is under an armistice.

Kim and two others asked the Constitutional Court to review the law and the court held a public hearing Thursday. It was the third hearing of its kind, after the court ruled the law constitutional in 2004 and 2011.

Oh stressed that those people wanted to be given an opportunity to serve in ways that did not force them to act against their religious beliefs.

“For the believers, this matter goes to the core of their identity, the fundamental value of their existence,” Oh said.

He said the law falls behind the international standard on human rights issues, with 94 percent of conscientious objectors serving jail terms worldwide being from this country.

“Such objectors are granted refugee status in countries such as Canada, Australia, and France,” he said. “Korea needs to move toward recognizing human rights as the international community numerously recommended.”

Not only international rights bodies such as Amnesty International and the United Nations Human Rights Committee, but also Korea’s National Human Rights Commission, recommended in 2005 that the government introduce alternative military service.

However, lawyer Seo Gyu-young, representing the Ministry of National Defense, said making exceptions on subjective grounds will damage public trust on conscription.

“Those seeking to dodge military service would abuse it,” Seo said. “Also, there is no way to properly verify their faith.”

Despite the international community’s repeated recommendations, he said a country does not have to comply with every standard. “A country has a right to exercise its own discretion in matters concerning national interest.”

In response, lawyer Kim Su-jung said imposing a longer period, or heavy workload, for alternative service could offset such worries.

“We can consider making them serve twice the period of military service, or do physically and mentally demanding work such as taking nightshifts at welfare facilities for the elderly,” she said.

Kim stressed that apart from fair conscription, recognizing the minority is the first step toward a better and open society.

Lawyer Park Ju-min said excluding conscientious objectors from military service would not cause a military manpower shortage because the number was small.