Society

Female Consription



Korea is enforcing conscription as duty for national defense. After military advantage law was abolished, conscripted soldiers performing with poor conditions for their efforts. Along the way, a petition was posted on Cheongwadae Petition Board with the title ‘The mandatory for only male’s military service should change for females to do it together'. This petition has received a tremendous amount of attention both positive and negative. Ever president Moon Jae-in commented on this issue. Mandatory military service for men has been debated for a long time. Accordingly, there are various pro and con opinions.

Pro

In Korea, only men perform military service. Only conscripted soldiers have mandatory physical exams and perform actual national defense duties. Advantages for military servers is abolished. Despite poor conditions in the military, most soldiers have performs well. Some Korean women and disabled people union don’t want to give soldiers any more benefits or advantages, but they should instead just ne thankful for their service. I agree that both men and women should have mandatory military service for the following reasons.
First, the current military service law is unconstitutional. In article 36 of the Constitution, it states ‘all people have national defense duty. Also nobody is penaltized for performing their duty.’ However, ‘Conscription Law’, a sub-article of 36, says only males have duty to perform 21 months of military service. Men who complete military service also have reservist duty for 4 years and then civil defense duty for 4 years. That is 7 additional years they must serve. While men perform military duty with poor pay and poor conditions, what do women do? They are free to do anything they want. It is burden for men.
Second, some people insist a male’s body is more appropriate for military service than a female’s. They contend it is inappropriate and inefficient for women to do military service. That is sexist and wrong. There are female commissioned and noncommissioned officers, fire fighters, and police officers. If females have improper bodies for military service, they should not be able to do those jobs, too. There are differences between male and female bodies, but those differences don’t prevent women from being good soldiers or officers.
Third, performing military service is also helpful to women. During basic training, they can develop a healthy body and can learn various self-defense skills to protect themselves. If war breaks out, those skills will be helpful in protecting oneself. They will also be helpful to national defense.
Mandatory military service for both men and women is good for men, women, and the nation. Men perform military service for their families and their nation. They accept and try to embrace this grave responsibility. If this mandatory military service for men and women becomes law, then hopefully other aspects of military service will improve. If so, everyone will satisfactorily perform their duties.

● Opinion from a reader
(Lee Sung-hyung, Majot in Mechanical and Automtive Engineering)

I agree with the second reason. If female’s body is improper, it doesn’t make sense for women to be commissioned officers. Executives should have ability suitable for their position. Unless they have, it is harm to others. The reason female conscription is a hot issue is not only because women wil serve with men, but also it is time for them to serve. It is hard to implement female conscription right now, I hope problems such as budgets and supplies get gradually solved.

By Seo Jae-kyung
KMG Junior Reporter
tjworud2887@naver.com

Con

Since the government stopped giving soldiers an advantage in getting a job, the topic of mandatory military service for women has frequently popped up. Although many believe female conscription offers equal rights for both sexes by, there are also many people who disagree. I disagree with female conscription.
First, women are not suitable for the military because their physical ability. The military needs soldiers who are strong. The muscular strength of men is biologically superior to women because the formation of a muscle requires testosterone (a male hormone). Experts say that in a war men and women working together decreases efficiency because women have weaker stamina. Although there are recently more female soldiers in the Korean military, the number is still small.
Second, the implementation of female conscription will waste money and manpower. When hundreds of thousands of new soldiers join the army, there are no documents or guidelines on how to manage all the new expenses. It is no easy task organizing trainers only for female soldiers and providing special supplies. In addition, Because men and women will have different jobs, job assignments can cause reverse discrimination. Male soldiers will get jobs in combat, engineering or computers and female soldiers will get jobs in food preparation, supplies or administration. Even female commissioned officers rarely apply for technology related mechanical engineering assignments because they are not interested in those fields. Even in Israel where there is female conscription, the majority of female soldiers are assigned to supply bases or administration. For these reasons, male soldiers will be assigned to combat, technology or engineering positions whether they like it or not.
Finally, there is the issue of sexual minorities joining the army. If female conscription happens, transgender people and other sexual minorities will also go to the army. In 2016, transgender people didn’t have to serve in the military. Instead, they must participate in civil defense training once a year. Experts cannot say positively that they have less stamina than women; therefore, they will be drafted.
Female conscription can improve gender equality, but there are many problems with it at the moment. The issues of female physical ability, budget, manpower and sexual minorities need to be resolved before it begins. Accordingly, it isn’t the right time to introduce female conscription.

● Opinion from a reader
(Oh Ji-in, Department of English Language and Literature)

I disagree with female conscription. Of course, when all men and women serve military duty, the nation will be able to choose the most talented people for positions. However, although women have excellent stamina, there is an inherent difference in male and female stamina.


By Kang Na-yeong
KMG Reporter
qpfk38@stu.kmu.ac.kr