Ministry of National Defense Republic of Korea

The deaths of 90 soldiers who lost their lives on duty, which had not previously been recognized as deaths on duty despite the deaths being caused by incidents during military service, are now recognized as deaths on duty.

On June 4th, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) and the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) announced: “The deaths of 90 soldiers who died while on military duty, which were previously not recognized as deaths on duty even though the cause of death was identified as incidents occurring in the military through a close investigation made by the Presidential Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths, will now be officially recognized as deaths on duty following the recommendation of ACRC and the reexamination by the MND.”

The Presidential Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths investigated and revealed the truth of the deaths of 230 soldiers out of a total of 393 soldiers during its four-year term from 2006 to 2009. Among them, the deaths of 139 soldiers were determined as deaths on duty. However, the deaths of the remaining 91 soldiers were not reviewed as there was no request for a review from their families. Reviews of deaths on duty are performed only after a request from families or a recommendation by ACRC or National Human Rights Commission of Korea.

This acknowledgement of death on duty was based on the recommendation of ACRC for the 91 unreviewed soldiers. A ‘task force for the investigation of suspicious deaths and institutional improvement’ carried out a blanket review on them, and the deaths of 90 of the soldiers were recognized as deaths on duty except one.

As an official from the MND explained: “In the three revisions to the Enforcement Decree of the Military Personnel Management Act that have been made since 2015, the criteria for the acknowledgement of a death as a death on duty was changed. However, in many cases previous deaths were not reviewed to determine whether they now qualified as deaths on duty, because the bereaved family was not informed, or the family did not request a review due to a distrust of the review process.”

The MND eased the criteria for the review of death on duty through a revision of the Enforcement Decree of Military Personnel Management Act. Now, as an example, a suicide or an unnatural death is recognized as a death on duty when it is related to official duties.

As ACRC has recommended a full investigation and review of all soldiers who died in various incidents while on military duty, the MND also plans to review cases that the Presidential Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths rejected or deemed impossible to clearly identify, after judging whether they meet the requirements of a death on duty or not.

An official from the MND said, “ACRC's comprehensive recommendation this time opens the door for the Ministry to review similar issues in the future without a request from the bereaved family. As for the suspicious deaths on military duty investigated by national organizations, the MND will judge whether or not they are deaths on duty through a full investigation."

Kwon Geun-sang, director of Ombudsman Bureau of ACRC, and No Su-cheol, director of the task force for the investigation of suspicious deaths and institutional improvement, said, “This late recognition of suspicious deaths on military duty as deaths on duty is significant in that it addresses resentments and fulfills responsibility and the need to pay respects. ACRC and the MND will continue to cooperate with each other in order to fulfill responsibility and the need to pay respects for all the soldiers who died while on duty for their country."

Meanwhile, the task force for the investigation of suspicious deaths and institutional improvement gave comfort to bereaved families by reviewing the deaths of 197 soldiers, including the deaths of 91 soldiers identified by the Presidential Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths, and has determined the deaths of 194 soldiers as deaths in war and deaths on duty since its establishment in September last year. The deaths of 194 soldiers recognized as deaths in war and deaths on duty include the unclaimed bodies of 30 soldiers.

By Yeong-Sun, Lee < ys119@dema.mil.kr >

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