It has been belatedly revealed that hazing between senior and junior soldiers took place last year at the Gyeryongdae Service Support Military Police Battalion, a direct unit under the Ministry of National Defense, which has recently faced criticism for poor military discipline management following a senior soldier's "food torture" incident against a junior soldier.
In September of last year, Private A, an Air Force soldier assigned to the military police battalion, was disciplined for subjecting Private B, a junior soldier belonging to the Army, to hazing and verbal abuse.
Because soldiers from the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps live together in an integrated environment within the military police battalion, senior-junior relationships are formed even among soldiers from different military branches.
It was found that Private A spearheaded the harassment, using a box cutter to tear Private B's military uniform stored in the locker, forcing him to engage in "absurd role-playing" during sleeping hours, and subjecting him to verbal abuse.
He is also reportedly suspected of leading a bullying campaign by sharing juniors' mistakes over the internal intranet network.
Upon recognizing Private A's hazing through an internal report in September of last year, the unit dispatched him to the facility battalion to separate him from the victim before disciplining him.
Private A returned to his original unit after the victim was transferred to another unit, and he currently serves as the "representative squad leader."
While this position is reportedly customarily held by the most senior among the squad leaders, criticism has also been raised that it is inappropriate to assign a soldier disciplined for hazing to a role serving as a bridge between soldiers and officers.
Previously, allegations were also raised that two Marines belonging to the Gyeryongdae Service Support Military Police Battalion committed hazing against junior soldiers, prompting a police investigation.
They are accused of subjecting juniors to habitual verbal abuse and physical assault, inappropriate physical contact in the shower, and "food torture" such as forcing them to eat wasabi.
Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-back, considering the gravity of the matter, ordered a self-audit by the Ministry of National Defense on this day.
Reported by Kim Jiuk | Video by Kim Na-on | Graphics by Yang Hae-min | Produced by SBS Digital News
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