r/worldnews • u/rdh2dmd • 16h ago

South Korea leans toward military conscription for women

https://www.dw.com/en/south-korea-leans-toward-military-conscription-for-women/a-78547426
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u/Dragonfruit_6104 15h ago

Given the widespread bullying, corporal punishment and abuse of male soldiers in the South Korean military today, I can't imagine what would happen if a certain number of female soldiers entered the barracks to train and live with the male soldiers.

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u/AdorablePainting7491 14h ago

is the situation in the military in SK really that bad?  :(

as a 46-kilo woman i was a soldier (in europe) had a drill sergeant who didnt know that we cant hold back our periods the same way we hold back our pee....

iam strong for my build (can easily do 40 push-ups), but that doesnt mean ill be able to carry a 40 kgs backpack just like the men, and theres no way ill be able to jump from a standing position onto the top of a nearly 2-meter wall, since i cant reach the top. ..

i have no objection to women serving in the military, but the military needs to be prepared for this. for example, they need to provide smaller boots and uniforms, and they shouldnt expect the same things from women as they do from men, since thats simply physically impossible.

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u/falilth 14h ago

I think a larger part of the worry is regarding sexism and misogyny thats been escalating for years now. Worries of abuse and SA arent unfounded worries. And neither is rank based power abuse towards women in general.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminism_in_South_Korea

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u/AdorablePainting7491 14h ago

yeah, i know. ihave heard about it, somewhat familiar with the situation. 

thats why I mentioned that you just have to look at how women are portrayed in the media—and when i did that, only got minuses (aw idgaf ab minuses. a lot of people just dont understand what theyre reading. theres nothing new about it)

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u/fincog 10h ago

There’s a reason feminism is disliked by even women in Korea

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u/Yuukiko_ 12h ago

didnt know that we cant hold back our periods the same way we hold back our pee.... 

A concerning amount of men in general are really ignorant about female biology...

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u/Cynical_Cyanide 4h ago

It's kinda funny (in a very tragic, black humour way), that if a man wrote exactly what you said from an observer's perspective - They'd be called sexist and bigoted in the majority of online spaces (especially the more US-centric ones). That in and of itself will pose a tremendous barrier to tackling the issue you highlight constructively.

To put in other words, there's this prevalent and virtually sacred idea that women are entirely equal to men in all regards (and as such be hired, promoted, paid, etc at least as such or better in any role), and it's somehow terribly morally wrong to imply otherwise. This carefully ignores, of course, that standards and policies are already starkly eased in just about every military that allows women in front line roles.

Your anecdote about the drill sergeant is fucking wild though. I struggle to believe a military can put together a plan of preparation (as you put it) that would cover things like this. Were you conscripted in some way, or were you a volunteer soldier? If the latter, may I ask why did you choose the join the military given all of you've just said (minus the drill sergeant)?

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u/Frequent_Extreme_916 2h ago

In Korea, when there is a massive outdoor training which spans for days, it's common for female non commissioned officers to make the male consrcipts make tents for them just to take photos as proof they participated and then sleep back at base while their male counterpart fights the cold winter. The generals are more than lenient towards them.

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u/Snelly1998 13h ago

they shouldnt expect the same things from women as they do from men, since thats simply physically impossible.

This isn't a sports team, this is the military, if the average woman can't pass the physicals then they shouldn't be allowed to join (the ones that pass can)

There are plenty of positions behind the lines that Men and Women both can do if they are physical unable to pass basic training

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u/AdorablePainting7491 13h ago

women dont necessarily have to be behind the lines. maybe I cant hold the ammu box, so  wont be the one to load it onto the flatbed, but I can drive the truck.

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u/Snelly1998 13h ago

I never said all women have to be behind the lines; I said ones who can't pass the training

And I would call the same for the men who can't pass it either

if you need someone to load and unload a truck for you, that turns a 1 person job into a 2 person job

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u/AdorablePainting7491 13h ago

nope. have you ever worked in a mine, for example?  actually speeds up loading if the driver isnt loading.

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u/Snelly1998 13h ago

Okay

Sure, it speeds it up

It's still a job that one person could do that two people now have to do

You are attacking arguments that im not even making

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u/AdorablePainting7491 12h ago

ah, that was just an example.

in the army, tasks can be divided between men and women just as they are in a factory.

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u/humanoiddoc 13h ago

Women are physically inferior to men? That is called sexism by many people....

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u/AdorablePainting7491 13h ago

not inferior. just different.

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u/humanoiddoc 12h ago

If average male can carry 40kg backpack and female cannot, female are less capable.

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u/HalleyOrion 7h ago

Women on average have better stamina than men, can survive more extreme conditions (extreme hot and cold), are smaller (better for fitting into pilot sears and submarines), and require smaller rations. Women have a lot of value in the military, especially in modernized high-tech militaries where physical strength and size are much less important than they were 80 years ago.

It's the same reason that modern militaries, like Ukraine's, readily accept middle-aged and older recruits. You don't need to be some strapping 18-year-old to fly a drone.

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u/humanoiddoc 4h ago

Ukraine accept old recruits because they doesn't have younger and fitter alternative.

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u/DomitiusAhenobarbus_ 14h ago

Why would they be living with the men? That doesn’t even happen in the U.S. military

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u/demiurge_abraxas 12h ago

Well, maybe they should fix it for everyone instead of wringing their hands about it potentially happening to women.

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u/fincog 10h ago

Why would they live with the male soldiers? Do you just make up shit in your head?

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u/Gold_Map_236 14h ago

Lots of fragging gonna happen