South Korean court upholds prohibition on gay sex in military

The Constitutional Court of South Korea has confirmed a law that forbids same-sex relationships in the military. They said it could harm the readiness for combat. The country’s LGBTQ community sees this decision as a disappointing step backwards.

On Thursday, the court made a decision with a vote of 5 in favor and 4 against. They did not agree to say that a part of the Military Criminal Act is against the constitution. This part says that “anal intercourse” or any other indecent act is not allowed while serving in the military, and people can be put in prison for up to two years for doing these acts.

Although the law does not specifically mention relationships between people of the same sex, it is commonly understood and interpreted that way. LGBTQ activists have been against this law for a while because they consider it discriminatory.

In the past, many people have been arrested using the law, which some people think was unfairly targeting gay people.

The court said in its decision on Thursday that if soldiers were allowed to have same-sex relationships, it could cause problems with maintaining discipline and potentially disrupt the chain of command in the army.

If people agree to have sex, it can still cause a lot of harm to the military if it happens while they are working.

Four judges who disagreed with the majority concluded that the language of the article is unclear and can be interpreted in different ways. Three of those judges also warned against restricting someone’s sexual orientation in the name of military discipline.

They are not sure if the law only prohibited inappropriate behavior between soldiers of the same sex or if it also included inappropriate behavior between male and female soldiers.

The activist group Rainbow Action is not happy with the ruling. They think the court did not do a good job of protecting the minority’s rights.

However, the group found hope in the comments made by the judges who disagreed with the majority, as they cautioned against labeling sexual acts between same-sex couples as abnormal.

The judges who disagreed said that there is no good reason to treat consensual sexual acts between soldiers of the same sex and those between opposite-sex soldiers differently.

The group emphasized that the provision in the Military Criminal Act which addresses indecent acts is discriminatory towards sexual minorities.

Amnesty International’s East Asia Researcher, Boram Jang, expressed concern over the Korean military continuing to criminalize consensual same-sex acts. Jang sees this as a significant setback in the ongoing fight for equality in the country.

The researcher said the ruling highlighted the common bias that sexual minorities experience in South Korea and the government’s inaction to support and promote equality for them.

South Korea has one of the largest active armies in the world because almost all men between 18 and 28 are required to serve in the military.

This case is one of the few that has been brought to the South Korean courts. The district courts decided to send it to the constitutional branch because they felt that there might be a problem with the phrase “any other indecent act. ”

South Korea doesn’t consider same-sex marriage as legal, but activists say there has been improvement on LGBTQ rights lately.

In February, a court made an important decision in support of a gay couple who wanted fair access to health benefits. The supporters and activists were really happy about the decision because it was the first time that the legal rights of this type of couples were acknowledged.

The person named So Seong-wook went to court because the National Health Insurance Service, which is connected to the government, began asking him to pay insurance fees even though he is considered a dependent of his male partner.

However, Christian and conservative groups have been showing a strong increase in opposition lately.

In May, South Korea’s largest LGBTQ pride celebration, Seoul Queer Culture Festival, was unable to get permission to use its usual location for their event. Instead, the venue was used for a Christian youth concert.

A month later, there were fights in the city of Daegu. Local leaders, including the mayor, argued with the police during a protest against the Daegu Queer Culture Festival.

People who disagreed, like Christian groups, tried and did not succeed in stopping the festival through a court order. The mayor, Hong Joon-pyo, had expressed disapproval of the festival because he believed it promoted an inappropriate understanding of sex among young people.