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Republic of Korea - Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under Article 8(1) of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict: Initial reports of States parties due in 2006 [2007] UNCRCSPR 18; CRC/C/OPAC/KOR/1 (16 July 2007)

COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 8 (1) OF THE OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION ON
THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD ON THE INVOLVEMENT OF CHILDREN IN
ARMED CONFLICT

Initial reports of States parties due in 2006

REPUBLIC OF KOREA

[1 April 2007]

CONTENTS

Paragraphs Page

I. INTRODUCTION 1 - 5 3

II. INFORMATION RELATING TO ARTICLES 1 TO 7
OF THE OPTIONAL PROTOCOL 6 - 28 4

Article 1 Measures to ensure that children do not take part
in hostilities 6 - 7 4

Article 2 Compulsory recruitment 8 - 12 7

Article 3 Voluntary recruitment 13 - 20 8

Article 4 Rules relating to non-governmental armed forces 21 - 22 11

Article 5 National legislation and international
humanitarian law 23 11

Article 6 Implementation and compliance with the provisions
of the Optional Protocol 24 - 25 12

Article 7 International cooperation 26 - 28 12

I. INTRODUCTION

1. The Republic of Korea signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child on 25 September 1990 and deposited an instrument of ratification on 20 November 1991, under the condition that certain paragraphs in conflict with related domestic laws would be reserved accordingly. The Convention came into force in Korea on 20 December 1991. The Korean Government has since pursued innovations and reforms in various sectors of society to promote the rights of the child, and these national efforts have been and continue to be in line with the spirit of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Optional Protocol to the Convention.

2. This report is the initial report that the Republic of Korea submitted to the Committee on the Rights of the Child concerning the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict. This report contains compiled data on legal and institutional measures as well as policy data related to the implementation of the Optional Protocol, which was signed on 6 September 2000 and came into effect on 24 October 2004.

3. The Republic of Korea is a State party to the International Convention on Human Rights, which reaffirms a deep conviction in the necessity of basic human rights, human dignity and worth for all people. The Convention, in accordance with article 6, Provision 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea, has the same effect as that of related domestic laws. Therefore, most of the contents of the Optional Protocol are reflected in related domestic laws and regulations. The Korean Government continues to strive for the faithful implementation of the Protocol to ensure, protect and promote the rights of the child based on appropriate administrative and legislative measures.

4. The Republic of Korea remains committed to protecting children from involvement in armed conflict by respecting the principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Protocol, including those principles related to non-discrimination, the best interests of the child, survival and development, and guarantee to safety, as well as freedom of participation and expression. Major national measures taken to implement the Optional Protocol are as follows:

(a) The minimum age for voluntary enlistment for active service in the armed forces was raised from 17 to 18 years by amending the related provision of the Military Service Act;

(b) An amendment was made to a specific provision in the Air Force Regulations that had formerly stipulated that any person under the age of 18 among students at the Air Force Aerial Science High School would perform basic wartime duties in times of war. This amendment effectively prevents any person under the age of 18 from being involved in armed conflict under any circumstance.

5. The Republic of Korea, in the implementation of domestic laws and administrative and institutional measures, complies with the provisions of the Optional Protocol. Currently, there is no case of any violation of the Protocol. In the future, the Korean Government will continue to improve the enforcement of this Protocol by redressing any inadequacies in close coordination among related government ministries.

II. INFORMATION RELATING TO ARTICLES 1 TO 7
OF THE OPTIONAL PROTOCOL

Article 1
Measures to ensure that children do not take part in hostilities

6. Article 39, paragraph 1, of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea stipulates that all citizens shall bear the duty of national defence under such conditions as prescribed by law. The duties of military service are governed by the Military Service Act. Under this Act, types of military service are divided into active service, reserve service, selective service, first militia service and second militia service. Every male national of the Republic of Korea shall be enlisted into the first militia service on the year he attains 18 years of age and women are excluded from conscription (Military Service Act, art. 3 (para. 1), art. 8, and art. 5 (para. 1 (4)).

7. The Military Service Act clearly states that no male national under the age of 18 may be enlisted for active or reserve service.

Table 1
Persons subject to military service by age

Table 2
Definition of military service by type

Table 3
Age distribution by type of military service

Article 2
Compulsory recruitment

8. In the Republic of Korea, compulsory recruitment into the armed forces of persons under the age of 18 is prohibited by law. The related provisions of the law are as follows:

(a) Every male national of the Republic of Korea shall be enlisted into the first militia service when he attains 18 years of age;

(b) Every male national obliged to serve in the military shall undergo the conscription examination in the year that he attains 19 years of age;

(c) Persons are enlisted into active service at the age of 19 or 20 (articles 8, 9 and 16 of the Military Service Act);

(d) Only a person aged 18 or older can be enlisted into active service by voluntary application (article 20 of the Military Service Act).

9. In calculating the age for the performance of military service obligation of a person who has such obligation, the Military Service Act, under article 2, paragraph 2, stipulates that the term “from ... years of age” means “from the 1st of January in the year in which the person attains that age”, and the term “to ... years of age” means “until the 31st of December in the year in which the person attains that age”.

10. The process of enlistment into active service is as follows:

(a) Every male national of the Republic of Korea shall be enlisted into the first militia service when he attains 18 years of age in order to fulfil compulsory military service. That is when such persons may start to voluntarily apply for enlistment;

(b) Every male national shall undergo a conscription examination in the year that he turns 19. Types of military service (active service, selective service, second militia service, or military service exemption) are then determined taking the classification received in the examination (grade 1-7) into account;

(c) A person shall be enlisted into the active service in the year he receives the conscription examination or the year thereafter (the year he turns 20).

11. Those who will not be enlisted in active service as a result of the conscription examination are called into the selective service (article 5 of the Military Service Act) to serve as “publicinterest service personnel”. In cases of “special case for military service”, those who are subject to active service may work in designated professional fields for a certain period of time in accordance with the qualification standards acknowledged by the Government, instead of the military services. As for the selective services and special cases for military service, no person under the age of 18 shall be enlisted into the armed forces.

12. Article 83 of the Military Service Act stipulates that special measures may be taken in exceptional cases, such as during wartime or emergencies, or in the event that an order of military mobilization is issued. However, there is no provision that provides for an exception to adjust the enlistment age to under 18.

Article 3
Voluntary recruitment

13. Under article 14, paragraph 1, of the Military Service Act, any person of the age of 18 or older may voluntarily apply for active services in the armed forces. This provision was amended on 31 December 2004 to adjust the minimum age for voluntary enlistment from 17 to 18, in order to comply with the provisions of the Protocol.

Table 4
Current status of the voluntary enlistment into the army in 2006

14. The process of application, recruitment, and enlistment for active service for each armed forces is as follows:

(a) Filling out the application form on the Internet;

(b) Of applicants, the first round of selections for technical and administrative servicemen shall be made in consideration of the individual’s qualifications, licences, and/or majors as stated in the application;

(c) The final selection shall be made based on the screening procedure, including interviews and aptitude tests. Notices of enlistment shall then be issued to those who are admitted;

(d) The persons selected for active service shall be enlisted in the armed forces on a fixed date (article 20 of the Military Service Act).

15. The posting of advertisements on Internet portal sites and other websites, distribution of related informational booklets and the streetside display of posters are all employed as measures to encourage voluntary enlistment.

16. Military service of officers, warrant officers and non-commissioned officers shall be performed on the voluntary application basis. The minimum age for appointment of noncommissioned officers is 18, while the minimum age for appointment of warrant officers and officers is 20 (article 15, paragraph 1, of the Military Personnel Act).

17. In order to provide the requisite education for those who seek to become commissioned officers in the army, the navy and the air force, each branch of the armed forces operates its own national military academy. Additionally, there are the Army Nursing Academy, which trains nursing officers, and the Korea Third Military Academy, which has a two-year curriculum for army officers.

Table 5
Curriculum of Korea Military Academy

Table 6
Curriculum of Air Force Academy

18. The portion of subjects related to military studies at military academies is 26 per cent of the overall curriculum at the Korea Military Academy, 7 per cent at the Air Force Academy, and 29.5 per cent at the Naval Academy. With the aim of strengthening cadets’ knowledge, spirit and character, all national military academies provide their cadets with a rigorous education that will enable them to fulfil their duties and will ensure their continued self-development as military officers.

19. Under the Act on Establishment of Military Academies and the Act on Establishment of Nursing Military Academies, persons admitted into a military academy must be older than 17 and younger than 21. To be admitted into the Korea Third Military Academy, persons must be 19 or older.

20. The Air Force operates the Air Force Aerial Science High School to duly educate those who plan to become Air Force non-commissioned officers specializing in aerial science. In the past, when training may not be performed during wartime, even the trainees at the school under the age of 18 were made to perform basic wartime duties, such as base patrols. In order to comply with the Protocol, Air Force Regulation 15-1 (provision on the operation of wartime education) was amended on 1 April 2005 to delete the provision providing for the performance of such duties. Accordingly, no person under the age of 18 may be involved in armed conflict under any circumstance.

Article 4
Rules relating to non-governmental armed forces

21. Assuming that North Korea (the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) is to be classified as an independent nation according to the current international legal order in which both South (the Republic of Korea) and North Korea are member countries of the United Nations, no issue has arisen over the implementation of rules relating to nongovernmental armed forces, since an independent armed group other than the national armed forces of each country does not exist within the territory of the Republic of Korea.

22. Even if the National Security Act was interpreted to regard North Korea as an armed group, i.e. an anti-State organization, as in the case of the ruling of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Korea (Supreme Court Ruling No. 92-1148 on 24 July 1992), it would be impossible to take any step or to implement a related provision of the Protocol since no actual control of the Republic of Korea can be asserted in the area north of the military demarcation line. These circumstances would be regarded as an impediment to the implementation of the Protocol, and no additional measure or execution may be taken.

Article 5
National legislation and international humanitarian law

23. The Republic of Korea is a signatory to numerous international conventions on human rights and humanitarian laws, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Through international cooperation, the Korean Government is making active efforts to contribute to the prevention of activities that conflict with the Protocol and its implementation. Moreover, the country plays its due role in international peacekeeping activities and various international humanitarian efforts by promoting technical cooperation and financial assistance with the aim of realizing the rehabilitation of victimized children and social integration in places beset by armed conflict. Major international conventions to which the Republic of Korea is a signatory are as follows:

(a) The Convention on the Rights of the Child which came into force on 20 November 1989 and was ratified on 20 November 1991;

(b) The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which came into force on 16 December 1966 and was ratified on 10 April 1990;

(c) The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which came into force on 16 December 1966 and was ratified on 10 April 1990;

(d) The Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which came into force on 16 December 1966 and was ratified on 10 April 1990;

(e) The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, which came into force on 18 December 1979 and was ratified on 27 December 1984;

(f) The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which came into force on 10 December 1984 and was ratified on 9 January 1995;

(g) The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which came into force on 17 July 1998 and was ratified on 13 November 2002.

Article 6
Implementation and compliance with the provisions of the Optional Protocol

24. At present, there is no situation in the Republic of Korea that would call for the implementation of measures to protect or support Korean children who were demobilized from previous military service. However, in line with the continuing military standoff with North Korea, legislative and administrative measures have been put in place to prevent children from becoming involved in armed conflict. Moreover, consistent efforts are being made to strengthen public awareness campaigns on international laws relating to the promotion of the rights of the child, including the contents of the Protocol.

25. The Republic of Korea has been promoting the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Protocol by implementing other international agreements related to children and by conducting evaluations of such implementations. The Korean Government will continue to improve public awareness of children’s rights as relating to their involvement in armed conflict. Additionally, as part of efforts to prevent children from any direct or indirect harm from armed conflict and to promote their rights, practical training and education germane to children’s rights and international humanitarian law will be provided to parties involved in the international peacekeeping process, including relevant civilians, military personnel, and policemen.

Article 7
International cooperation

26. The Republic of Korea takes part in international efforts aimed at preventing the involvement of children in armed conflict. Accordingly, the Korean Government actively supports the Security Council initiatives and related resolutions on protecting civilians and children within areas witnessing armed conflict and supports the General Assembly resolutions on the protection of children.

27. Furthermore, the Republic of Korea has been voluntarily contributing funds worth US$ 2.1 million annually to a variety of projects aimed at preventing the involvement of children in armed conflict, including a UNICEF project to protect children in areas beset by armed hostilities such as in Afghanistan, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. As an executive board member of UNICEF for a three-year period beginning in 2006, the Republic of Korea plans to provide more active support to UNICEF activities related to preventing children’s involvement in hostilities.

28. In addition to numerous multilateral efforts, the Korean Government has also pursued bilateral-level action with the intent of preventing children’s involvement in armed conflict. For a three-year period spanning from 2004 to 2006, the Republic of Korea provided a total of US$ 2.3 million to areas in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip for building schools, purchasing computers for classes, and providing vitamins to students at elementary, middle, and high schools. Such assistance is believed to have contributed to preventing children’s involvement in armed conflict at the source and helping to educate children on the negative effects of violence.

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