hankyoreh

A still from a promotional YouTube video by the Military Manpower Administration that has come under fire for comments belittling social work personnel (still from the Military Manpower Administration YouTube channel)

South Korea’s Military Manpower Administration has decided to edit one of its promotional videos after it caused a stir due to its derogatory way of referring to those who perform alternatives to active duty military service.

The Military Manpower Administration posted a video on Friday titled “Hearing about military life from a friend” on its official YouTube channel. The video showed an active-duty soldier on leave talking about his life in the military with his friends who will soon enlist.

In the video, the soldier on leave said, “I applied to the military’s [aptitude-boosting program] because I thought I had to go to the military [as an active-duty soldier] in order for me to be able to fit in society with the personality I have.” One of his friends then replied, “True, you’d have to at least serve in the military if you want to proudly call yourself a man.”

The soldier on leave replied, “We all have to go to the military anyway. That being the case, I wanted to do it the proper way.”

According to the conversation that takes place in the video, the soldier on leave was initially evaluated at Grade 4 according to the military service aptitude test, but after participating in an aptitude-boosting program run by the administration known as the "Super Himchani Project" (literally, "Super Strongman Project"), he was able to enlist in active duty service. The program is aimed at those who don’t qualify to enlist in active duty due to vision or weight problems (Grades 4 and 5, respectively). Through the program, aspiring soldiers receive financial support to attend gyms to lose weight or correct their vision at public health centers.

According to South Korea’s military enlistment standards, a score falling between Grades 1-3 allows for enlistment in active duty, Grade 4 qualifies one for reserve duty (social work personnel service), Grade 5 qualifies one for military support during wartime, while Grade 6 would result in exemption from military service.

There were comments on the video saying that it contained content that demeans those who serve via alternative military service, such as social work, and more than 18,000 reactions disliking the video (as of 1 pm on Sunday).

On Saturday, the Justice Party’s youth caucus released a statement, saying, “The Military Manpower Administration’s outdated perception that it is necessary for men to serve in active duty in order to become ‘real men’ is reflected in its official promotional video.” They demanded the removal of the video and an official apology from the Military Manpower Administration.

In the end, the Military Manpower Administration decided to revise the contents of the video. An official from the Military Manpower Administration said on Sunday, “It is regrettable that it has become a controversy, contrary to the original purpose [of the video],” while adding that “moving forward, we will put in more effort in conducting military service administration matters with more regard for the public’s point of view.”

By Kwon Hyuk-chul, staff reporter

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