FATAL ACCIDENTS IN THE MILITARY

[Anchor Lead]

There were unusually frequent reports of accidents and deaths in the military last year. It turns out that there actually were more fatal accidents in the military. Particularly concerning is the fact that more suicides were reported, calling for prompt actions.

[Pkg]

Fatal accidents in the military have been steadily decreasing since military culture was drastically transformed in 2013. But the number of deaths apparently spiked last year. KBS obtained a report on military deaths last year which showed more than one hundred fatal accidents in all, including 83 discipline-related accidents and 19 safety accidents. The number of deaths, which has been steadily declining in the past 7 years, has jumped back to a three-digit figure. The spike is believed to have come from an increase in suicides. The number of suicides in 2021 has roughly doubled from the previous year’s figure to reach the highest level since 2011.

[Soundbite] Kim Hyeong-nam(Secretary-General, Center for Military Human Rights in Korea) : "This is a sad report that makes us wonder if the military is actually willing and able to resolve issues such as the protection of soldiers’ human rights."

Experts note the military must find out exactly what drove those soldiers to take their own lives. For five years since 2015, suicides of officers and NCOs greatly outnumbered those of enlisted men. This finding prompted urgent calls for suicide prevention measures tailored to officers, NCOs and civilian workers in the military.

[Soundbite] Prof. Hyun Myung-ho(Dept. of Psychology, Chung-Ang Univ.) : "Physical abuse is not the problem. In most cases, stress from the workplace is the problem. It must be approached as a common office issue rather than a military problem."

According to a source inside the Defense Ministry, they are studying the reasons behind such a surge in fatalities and planning various preventive measures such as ensuring more anonymous counseling.