Korea, South

Prisoners for Peace Day 2003 focuses on the young movement of conscientious objectors in South Korea. Although conscientious objection in young in terms of a movement, the history of imprisonment of conscientious objectors--of Jehovah's Witnesses--goes back a long while. More than 10,000 Jehovah's Witnesses have been imprisoned in the last 50 years for their conscientious objection, mostly to three years imprisonment, and until recently often several times.

(...)

85. The national legislation reportedly does not guarantee the right to conscientious objection on grounds of religious belief.

23 March 2009

Issues

Korea maintains conscription.

The right to conscientious objection is not
recognised.

Those
who refuse to answer a call up for reserve duty are
subject to multiple prosecutions and repeated fines or imprisonment.

Military recruitment
Conscription

Conscription is enshrined in art.

Korea, annexed as a colony in 1910, suffered under oppressive Japanese rule until the end of World War II. During that time there were many acts of repression against the Korean people, no single example of which was more severe or massive than the forcible drafting of Korean women for sexual service to Japanese troops located throughout the Asia-Pacific area. The euphemistic term by which these women were known is translated into English as ‘comfort women’ (or girls).