Instances of soldiers fleeing overseas to shirk military duties surge in first half of year

Soldiers on leave have been caught fleeing the country by plane and deserting their military duties.

Soldiers take part in a military drill at the Government Complex in central Seoul on Aug. 19. [YONHAP]

Soldiers on leave have been caught fleeing the country by plane and deserting their military duties.

There have been 10 cases of overseas desertion over the past decade, five of which took place in the first half of this year alone in an unusual surge, according to data submitted by each branch of the military to Rep. Kang Dae-sik of the People Power Party, which was disclosed on Thursday.

One case occurred in December last year, when a soldier deserted while on medical leave. The soldier had been granted a leave of absence to undergo shoulder surgery and was hospitalized in Korea, but secretly left the hospital and boarded a flight to Japan. After spending approximately 100 days in hiding, the soldier was arrested by local police on charges of illegal stay and was forcibly deported.

In another case in June, a conscript disappeared after boarding a flight to the Philippines while on vacation. The soldier’s parents traveled to the Philippines to persuade the soldier to return. The soldier eventually came back and is currently facing trial in a military court.

Another soldier who fled to the United States while on leave in April has yet to be located, even four months later.

With such desertions continuing, criticism is mounting over loopholes in the military’s system for managing the overseas travel of active-duty soldiers. The fundamental issue lies in the absence of a mechanism to prevent conscripts from leaving the country without authorization. While social service personnel cannot pass immigration checks without prior approval, active-duty soldiers face no such restrictions.

“The Defense Ministry must establish a fundamental measure to block unauthorized departures by integrating its system with the country’s immigration control network,” said Rep. Kang.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY JANG GU-SEUL [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]