The Korea Herald

Three soldiers dead in apparent suicides

Aug 12, 2014

Two Army corporals were found dead on Monday night in a Seoul apartment in an apparent double suicide, military authorities said Tuesday. They belonged to the Army’s 28th Division, which has been under intense public scrutiny since a private first class from the unit died earlier this year due to appalling abuse in his barracks in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province. Later in the day, another suicide occurred at a unit of the Army’s Third Corps in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, adding to public concerns a
[Graphic News] Nearly 4,000 maladapted soldiers prematurely discharged

Aug 12, 2014
Korea strives to raise skilled cyberspecialists

Aug 10, 2014

This is the sixth and last installment in a series of articles delving into cybersecurity challenges facing South Korea and the world, and global efforts to tide them over. ― Ed.In cyberwarfare, neither the rumblings of tanks nor the crackle of gunfire can be heard. But there are elite forces grappling to ward off attacks in cyberspace and preserve the computer networks that are crucial for people’s everyday lives.For South Korea, nurturing cyberspecialists has become a critical national task as
Military to establish human rights committee

Aug 10, 2014

The Defense Ministry said Sunday that it would establish a consultative committee on human rights and appoint human rights educators at battalions and higher-level field units amid mounting criticism over a high-profile military abuse case.Officials said that the ministry is set to conduct a full-scale revision of the military directives concerning human rights to push for these plans. The moves appeared aimed at shoring up public trust that has been eroded following a recent series of violence
U.S. expert calls for S. Korea, U.S. to ditch OPCON transfer agreement

Aug 8, 2014

South Korea and the United States should admit their agreement to transfer wartime operational control of South Korean troops from Washington to Seoul was a mistake and should focus on strengthening combined defense capabilities, a U.S. expert said Thursday.David S. Maxwell, associate director of the Center for Peace and Security Studies at Georgetown University, made the point, stressing the planned transfer would involve dismantling the Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command, which he said would "
Figure skating queen’s boyfriend falls from grace

Aug 7, 2014

National hockey team player and military draftee Kim Won-Joong, who is the boyfriend of figure skating queen Kim Yu-na, has come under fire for being absent without leave, the Defense Ministry said on Thursday.The Defense Ministry confirmed that Kim and two fellow soldiers left their base in Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province, without permission to visit a Thai massage parlor in June. The massage parlor does not provide any kind of salacious services, according to the ministry.Kim had originally told the
Military field operation specialist tapped as new Army chief

Aug 7, 2014

Gen. Kim Yo-hwan, chief of the Army's Second Operations Command, has been nominated to become the country's new Army chief, the defense ministry said Thursday.Kim, 58, a specialist in field operations with broad experience in the Army, will succeed Gen. Kwon Oh-sung, who offered to resign on Tuesday, holding himself responsible for the brutal death of an Army conscript in April. "After the approval of the Cabinet during a weekly meeting slated for Friday, President Park Geun-hye is expected to a
Korea to dispatch Navy destroyer to evacuate nationals from Libya

Aug 7, 2014

South Korea will dispatch a Navy destroyer to Libya on Thursday as the country starts to evacuate South Koreans from the African country amid a worsening security situation there, the foreign ministry said.The dispatch came after the government issued a top-tier travel alert for the violence-ravaged country last week, requiring South Koreans based in Libya to evacuate. "The (4,400-ton) Munmu the Great will leave Oman's Port of Salalah in the afternoon to arrive in the sea of Libya around mid-Aug
Military to conduct special rights education on all servicemen

Aug 7, 2014

Halting all training and daily tasks, all military personnel from commanders to draftees will receive a one-day special human rights education this week following a series of tragic incidents in barracks, the defense ministry said Thursday.Last week, an Army private first class, who died in April from asphyxiation after being hit by his senior comrades and choking on some snacks he had been eating, was found to have long suffered brutal physical, mental and even sexual abuse. In June, an Army se
Army chief offers to resign over deadly barracks abuse

Aug 5, 2014

Military prosecution looks into allegations of beatings, sexual violence
South Korea counters North Korea's criticism of soldier death

Aug 5, 2014

South Korean officials accused North Korea of being hypocritical on Tuesday, responding to Pyongyang's condemnation of the South's military over the death of a bullied young Army conscript.The 23-year-old Army private first class died in April after allegedly being hit in the chest by his colleagues at their barracks while eating snacks, which led a chunk of food to get stuck in his airway. The private, identified only by his surname Yoon, was found to have suffered chronic bullying. The inciden
Army to add sexual abuse charges in beaten soldier case

Aug 5, 2014

The military prosecution said Tuesday it will bring an additional charge of sexual assault against one of the six soldiers accused of harassing and beating their junior conscript to death.The 23-year-old Army private first class, surnamed Yoon, died in April after allegedly being hit in the chest by his colleagues at their barracks while eating some snacks. The assault caused a piece of food to obstruct his airway, leading him to die of asphyxiation.Four of the alleged assailants were indicted o
Army to mull murder charges in abuse case

Aug 4, 2014

Under mounting pressure from the public and lawmakers, the Army said Monday it would consider pressing murder charges against soldiers who bullied a junior colleague who died after suffering physical and mental abuse. The 23-year-old draftee, identified by his surname Yoon, died on April 7 after being beaten by senior soldiers while they ate together. He was found to have suffered from physical and mental abuse since being dispatched a month earlier to the Army’s 28th Division in Yeoncheon, Gyeo
Defense chief apologizes for soldier's death after abuse

Aug 4, 2014

The defense minister apologized Monday over the death of a soldier who long suffered from severe assaults and abusive treatment by his comrades in his barracks, vowing to reform the military's culture to prevent any recurrence. In April, a 23-year-old Army private first class, surnamed Yoon, died after allegedly being hit in the chest by six of his colleagues at their barracks of the 28th Division in Yeoncheon, just south of the inter-Korean border, while eating some snacks.The assault caused a
‘Thought-out policy needed for gray-hat hackers’

Aug 3, 2014

Cybersecurity expert says defense policy must incorporate cyberspace