Rank bullies created sexual crimes within the military

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] Most female victims of sexual violence incidents occurring in the military are low-ranking non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and civilian employees. This indicates that sexual violence stemming from superior status is widespread in the military.

According to data from the Ministry of National Defense and the National Assembly Defense Committee on the 21st, there were 771 sexual violence cases in the military last year, averaging 64 cases per month. Regarding the status of female sexual violence victims, NCOs (58.6%) and civilian employees (13.8%) were the most common, followed by captains (12.6%) and junior officers (9.2%). Most of the affected NCOs and civilian employees had less than five years of service.

Most male perpetrators were senior NCOs (50.6%) and field-grade officers (23%).

There are calls for a tailored reporting and grievance counseling system by status, enabling junior female officers and female civilian employees with fewer years of appointment to actively report sexual crimes and seek counseling for grievances.

Additionally, same-sex sexual violence within the military increased from 260 cases in 2019 to 333 cases last year. Most victims of same-sex sexual violence were enlisted soldiers (92.2%). The majority of perpetrators were also enlisted soldiers (82.6%), followed by NCOs (13.8%).

Digital sexual crimes in the military also rose from 111 cases in 2019 to 145 cases last year. There is a need to instill awareness through continuous digital sexual crime prevention education that 'possession, purchase, storage, and viewing of illegal sexual exploitation materials are crimes.' Furthermore, perpetrators targeting civilians were mostly enlisted soldiers (60.1%) and NCOs (24.2%), with the highest incidence occurring in August, when contact with civilians is frequent.