韓国：「性交渉時の写真提出せよ」･･･同性愛兵士の人権被害深刻

記事入力 : 2006/02/15 17:54
「性交渉時の写真提出せよ」･･･同性愛兵士の人権被害深刻

　人権運動愛の部屋など44の社会市民団体の集まりである「人権団体連席会議」は15日、ソウル鍾路区安国洞のヌティナムカフェで記者会見を開き、「軍隊内の同性愛者の人権被害を糾弾する」とし、早急な解決を求めた。

　同会議は「昨年6月に入隊したある兵士が、自分が同性愛者であるという事実を明らかにし、軍隊内でカウンセリングを求めたが、軍当局はこのような事実に対し秘密維持の約束を守らなかっただけでなく、同意なしでエイズ検査を受けさせたほか、同性愛者であることを証明するため、性交渉の際の写真まで提出させたという内容が同性愛者人権連帯に受け付けられた」と主張した。

　「この報告により、軍隊内で同性愛者がどんなに差別を受け、抑圧的な環境におかれているのかが分かる」とし、軍当局の無責任な行動を批判した。

　同性愛者人権連帯の関係者は「男性の同性愛者らが軍入隊を避けることができないという状況の中、同性愛者らはいつもセクハラの加害者として扱われ、自分が同性愛者であるという事実をあたかも罪人のように隠し続け、2年間の兵役に耐えなければならない」と話した。

　同会議はまた、「軍当局は同性愛行為の処罰条項である軍刑法第92条と、同性愛を病気または心身障害に規定している国防部令第556号、徴兵身体検査など検査規則を即時廃止し、性的少数者がこれ以上軍隊内で差別と抑圧を受けることがないよう、人権教育と指針、人権ガイドラインをまとめるべき」と主張した。

　これに対し軍の関係者は「現在、該当兵士に対する国家人権委員会の真相調査を行われている」とし、「人権委員会の調査結果が出次第、後続措置を取る方針」とした。

朝鮮日報


english.chosun.com
Updated Feb.15,2006 18:18 KST
Group Denounces Abuse of Gay Conscript

A coalition of civic groups has denounced the treatment of gays in the Korean military. The leader of Solidarity for Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Human Rights of Korea, one of the groups, on Wednesday told reporters of the case of one private who asked to speak to his superiors about his homosexuality and was asked to bring photographic evidence showing him having sex with another man. “He was in effect the victim of sexual harassment,” the leader said.

The Human Rights Network called on the government to resolve the issue, saying the incident was “a clear example that the military is in a blind spot in terms of human rights abuses, and demonstrates just how serious human rights abuses of homosexual soldiers have become.” A spokesman for the military said the forces await for the outcome of an inquiry by the National Human Rights Commission. He said the private petitioned the NHRC on Feb. 9, and the watchdog has been investigating the facts at the unit where the incident took place since Tuesday. Depending on the results, the military will decide whether to launch its own investigation.

(englishnews@chosun.com )

The Korea Times
Civic Groups Urge Better Protection of Gay Soldiers
By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter

Human rights advocates Wednesday called on Korean military authorities to make more effort to protect gay soldiers who, they claim, are vulnerable to abuse in the barracks.

At a news conference in Seoul, leaders of an alliance of 35 civic groups, led by the Solidarity for LGBT (for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) Human Rights of Korea, announced the results of their studies of the human rights situation of gay soldiers in the military based on counseling records.

Among the cases of harassments made public by the groups was one of an army counselor who refused to counsel a gay solider unless the soldier submitted a photo of him having sex with a male partner to prove his homosexuality.

Other cases involved gay soldiers being urged to have blood tests to confirm AIDS infection or to reveal the number of times they had sex with male partners.

The groups urged the Ministry of Defense to take measures to protect the human rights of gay and bisexual men drafted into the military. They also asked the government to consider adopting alternative service to regular military service for gay men.

Members of the groups said they will submit the issue to the National Human Rights Commission for further review.

``The cases unearthed by our counseling efforts indicate that gay soldiers are vulnerable to a serious level of physical and mental abuse in the military,’’ said Hwang Jang-kwon, an official from the Solidarity for LGBT Human Rights of Korea.

``To eliminate these types of sexual harassment in the military, the nation’s draft system should be considered, and alternative civil services should be provided not only for conscientious objectors but also for gay men,’’ he said.

Hwang also called on the ministry to scrap an article from its ordinance that defines homosexuality as a disease or mental disability and requires army officers to immediately transfer soldiers confirmed to have conducted homosexual acts in the barracks.

The ministry declined to officially comment on the issue, saying that will decide whether to conduct an investigation of the alleged violations only if the commission requires them to do so after its review of the cases reported.

thkim@koreatimes.co.kr

02-15-2006 22:15