Ruling finds South Korean soldiers along DMZ suffered Agent Orange exposure

Posted on : 2016-08-17 17:43 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
For decades the South Korean government has claimed that Agent Orange was used only in two divisions
Lawyer Lee Yu-ho (left)
Lawyer Lee Yu-ho (left)

After fifty years of mystery, cases of Agent Orange exposure among South Korean soldiers working near the armistice line have been confirmed.

Oh Dong-ju, a 69-year-old reserve sergeant major, won an administrative lawsuit in Daejeon District Court on July 7. The case had been filed against the Army Chief of Staff to demand the overturning of a decision declaring his duties not to have been in a region where Agent Orange had been used. It was the first ruling to dispute the military’s official claim that Agent Orange was only used in US 2nd Infantry Division and ROK Army 21st Infantry Division regions in 1967 and acknowledge that exposure may have occurred in other units. An estimated 150,000 troops in ten infantry divisions would have been exposed to Agent Orange while working at the armistice line in late 1967 like Oh.

 who is representing former soldier Kim Dong-yoon
who is representing former soldier Kim Dong-yoon

Oh filed suit last year after his requests with the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans’ Affairs (MPVA) to be registered as suffering complications from Agent Orange exposure were repeatedly rejected. Oh claimed he had been exposed while working in the 3rd Infantry Division region between November and December 1967. The Army declared Oh ineligible for registration because “at that time, no Agent Orange was applied in the 3rd Infantry Division region.”

The Army’s official position is consistent with the US Military Advisory Group’s Vegetation Control Plan (CY-68): that Agent Orange was used in 1967 and 1968, but only in trial application in US 2nd Infantry Division and ROK Army 21st Infantry Division regions between Oct. 9 and 19, 1967. Oh countered with evidence in the form of a Class 3 confidential military document reporting “suspected application” of Agent Orange in the 3rd Infantry Division GOP region in 1967.

“Judging from the different circumstantial evidence from 1967, other units do appear to have used Agent Orange,” the court said in its ruling. “The Army was mistaken in using the record of the Vegetation Control Plan as evidence that Agent Orange was not used in other units.”

 who suffers aftereffects of Agent Orange exposure (center) and Oh Dong-ju
who suffers aftereffects of Agent Orange exposure (center) and Oh Dong-ju

Among the patients registered with the MPVA as having Agent Orange-related symptoms as of late June, those associated with use in South Korea accounted for 1,873 cases - just 1.87% of the 99,936 registered cases among soldiers deployed to Vietnam. A veteran can register as a Vietnam-related Agent Orange case once his service in Vietnam is confirmed and Agent Orange-related symptoms have been detected. But those suffering even from obvious symptoms related to exposure at home - like Oh - are unable to register if their place of service falls outside the officially recognized areas with Agent Orange or the time frame of Oct. 1967 to Jan. 1972 specified in the Agent Orange Act.

“Mr. Oh may have won, but it’s impossible to confirm the actual application of Agent Orange because the unit records are all confidential,” said Lee Yu-ho, Oh’s attorney.

“Victims of Agent Orange exposure at the DMZ area have had to suffer for a long time from being exposed to toxic materials while carrying out the duties assigned to them,” Lee added. “The state needs to establish progressive measures to look after them for the rest of their lives.”

By Song In-geol, Daejeon correspondent and Choi Ye-rin, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

 

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