By Choi Sung-jin
The idea of Korea shifting from compulsory military service to a voluntary system is spreading from some corners of the political community to the rest of society.
More lawmakers, ruling and in opposition, are exchanging pros and cons through the media and social networking services, political watchers said Tuesday.
Spearheading the social discussion about shifting to a voluntary military system is Gyeonggi Province Governor Nam Kyung-pil. In almost every interview with media outlets since last month, Nam has repeatedly made it clear he would make it a campaign pledge if he runs in the presidential election next year.
Nam wants to halve troop numbers -- now 600,000 -- and pay a monthly salary equivalent to that of G-9 government employees to those who volunteer to be career soldiers.
Given the gradual decline in the birthrate, it will be difficult to maintain the present conscription system, so it would be better to reduce troop numbers and train the slimmer military into more expert soldiers, Nam says. He said providing a monthly salary of about 2 million won would not be difficult if the nation halves its military.
Among politicians who back such calls is Rep. Kim Du-kwan of the opposition Minjoo Party of Korea. On Facebook, Kim said: “It is necessary to examine the voluntary system. Its introduction will also help to ease the youth unemployment problem.”
Some private experts also support the initiative. At the National Assembly’s National Defense Committee last year, Lee Ju-ho, a fellow at the Korea Development Institute, proposed a mixed system, in which the nation maintains the basic conscription system and selects half the troops from volunteers.
But most security experts say it is too early to discuss such a change given Korea faces the hostile communist regime in the north, stressing the volunteer system could lead to the loss of military strength.
It is imperative to have sophisticated weapons systems to reduce troop numbers, the opponents say. As seen in the controversy over deploying the U.S. missile interceptor system, however, the introduction of state-of-the-art weapons could trigger conflict among countries surrounding the Korean Peninsula, they said.
In addition, any discussion should include debates about the soldiers’ service environment, equity with young women and how to support them when they return to society after retiring, the opponents say.
Some watchers regard the proposal by Nam and other politicians as just “preempting political issues” in the run-up to presidential polls.
The news, however, could not be more welcome for young men – and their families --who have to join the army in the not so distant future, they said.
Regardless of the pros and cons about changes to the military system, it is bound to attract public interest, particularly when some young soldiers are being bullied by superiors and some have committed suicide, they said, adding it is sure to become one of the hottest campaign issues next year.