Bereaved Family·Air Force Commission, Reinstatement Lawsuit Continues
“According to the’emergency relief decision’ of the Human Rights Commission,
The Blue House should have stopped the entire screening.
Other ministries pointed out that human rights are violated
I will ignore it in the future, saying that there is no right to compulsory.”
“The Supreme Law and other judiciaries are also lagging behind human rights consciousness.
Sergeant Byun took time to proceed with the trial
“Conscientious objection to military service” narrowly interpreted.”
“Since Sergeant Byeon Hee-soo’s reinstatement lawsuit is a case of human rights violations, we should have proceeded to trial quickly. Not only the military, but the judiciary, which should be a bastion of human rights, is quite underdeveloped.” In an interview at the Military Rights Center in Mapo-gu, Seoul on the morning of the 16th, Lim Tae-hoon, director of the Military Rights Center, urged the judiciary to change their perceptions. Director Lim stands in front of a memorial board full of memos in commemoration of the late Sergeant Byun Hee-soo. By Kim Myung-jin, staff reporter
▶ The death of the late Sergeant Byun Hee-soo, a soldier who loved the military more than anyone else, is shocking and reflecting not only on the military but also on our society as a whole. The high barriers of discrimination that frustrated him are now becoming an awakening to break down. From the time Sergeant Byeon decided to find his sexual identity until he died, I met with the director of the Military Rights Center Lim Tae-hoon, who helped him fight, and heard about the’reinstatement of Byeon Hee-soo and the restoration of honor’.
On the day after Sergeant Byun Hee-soo’s funeral, the name of the director of the Military Rights Center Lim Tae-hoon appeared on his cell phone on the 6th. The phone was full of black and dark cries. Waiting for a while, he barely cried. “It is the way back to Seoul after the funeral of Sergeant Byeon. I thought I had to say this, so I called over the weekend. I wrote a photo of Hasa Byun and Yeongjeong as a cover for last year’s Saturday edition (“The breakthrough power of the armor can eliminate such discrimination. Haha” on March 21, 2020). Sergeant Byun’s parents liked the photo and used it, but I am sorry that the Hankyoreh could not understand it in advance.” “I am not the person who took the picture or the person in charge of the Hankyoreh, but you did well. I will tell the person in charge as it is.” Major General Lim arranged a press conference on the day Sergeant Byeon was forced into war in January last year, and has since led legal responses against the Ministry of Defense and the Army, including appeals and administrative litigation. Since Sergeant Byeon also decided to find his own sexual identity, he asked Director Lim about big and small problems and asked for advice. As such, Sergeant Byun Hee-soo’s death must have been a great sorrow and pain to him. During an interview at the Military Rights Center in Nogosan-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul on the morning of the 16th, his eyes were occasionally wet.
Lim Tae-hoon, the director of the Military Rights Center (left), and Kim Winter-mong, the CEO of the Trans Liberation Front, are giving candles to participating citizens at an event in memory of Sergeant Byun Hee-soo in front of the Seoul Ministry of Defense on the evening of the 12th. Senior Reporter Kim Jong-cheol
A citizen who participated in the’Memorial Action for Sergeant Byeon Hee-soo’ on the evening of the 12th is holding a candle and a’Pride flag’ (a rainbow flag symbolizing the human rights of LGBTI people) in front of the main gate of the Ministry of Defense. By Jeon Kwang-jun, staff reporter
Parents determined to’restore Sergeant Byun’s honor’
―The High Commission (Joint Countermeasures Committee for Reinstatement of Sergeant Byun Hee-Soo’s Reinstatement and Honor) decided to continue the suit for reinstatement. “If the defendant dies, the family can take over and proceed with the lawsuit. I also found a precedent that the lawyers did in the Seoul High Court. It is said that if there are benefits to the family such as overdue salary and severance pay, it is possible to take a lawsuit. Sergeant Byun’s parents consulted with the lawyers and filled out the paperwork for the enrollment. As soon as we have all the necessary documents, we will file an application with the court.” ―Your parents also agreed to continue the lawsuit? “of course. It is a clear idea of the bereaved family to restore the honor of Sergeant Byeon.” ―Sergeant Byun seems to have strong will of his parents. “Yeah. He promised to donate all the condolence money to us, and he said that if he wins the lawsuit and receives salary, etc., he will donate all of it as well. The two said that the only priority is the restoration of Hee-soo’s honor and reinstatement. It seems that you think that giving Sergeant Byeon the way he wanted in his lifetime, even if it was too late, would be a good way to send his only child.” ―When did you make that decision? “The water system problem was decided on the day it was announced. When I told my family members why it was important to continue the reinstatement lawsuit and why it was so important, my father agreed to do so. At the beginning of the funeral, you were sorrowed and struggling with the sadness of the loss of a child, but after seeing a lot of young people who do not know their faces and people from all walks of life go to condolences, it seems that you have summarized how it suits your child’s will. When he came up to Seoul on the 10th, he said,’I will work with the Military Rights Center for all future issues.’ I was originally going to attend Sergeant Byeon’s memorial meeting in front of the Ministry of National Defense on the evening of the 12th last Friday. When I told you that there was such an event, I asked,’Can I go too?’ Then he said,’I want to go and see’. But I wasn’t feeling well, so I couldn’t attend because I went down to Cheongju.” In April of last year, Sergeant Byeon organized a short life in Seoul at the request of his parents and went down to his hometown, Cheongju. Instead of going home, they lived separately in the residence provided by their father. ―Sergeant Byeon didn’t seem to have been supported by his parents in his lifetime? “I know that my parents took care of my life a lot, but I was very unfamiliar with the part related to the change of Sergeant Byun’s identity. Parents need time to support their children.” ―The picture you used with Youngjung was a big smile, but you said that your father chose the picture yourself? “When we showed you several pictures, my father said,’I like this,’ and pointed it out. In case I tried to recommend some pictures of wearing military uniforms, he said,’No, I like this picture’. In fact, we were thinking of that photo first in our minds.”
Sergeant Byun Hee-soo’s mourning. Sergeant Byun’s father was photographed by Youngjeong <한겨레> Senior reporter Kang Jae-hoon picked a picture taken during an interview last year. Provided by Tae-Hoon Lim
Sergeant Byun, who believed in the military too much
Sergeant Byeon tried to get a job after being forced to fight in the military, but could not find a job due to the coronavirus outbreak. It was one of the reasons I had to go down to Cheongju. Almost all his outings were to come to Seoul once a week for counseling and volunteer work at the’Youth LGBTI Self-Defense Support Center Ding-dong’. ―Did you meet often after going down to Cheongju? “Ding-dong and our Military Rights Center shared roles. The psychological part is handled by Ding-dong, where Sergeant Byeon was consulted, and we focused on legal support such as litigation. I worked hard to apply for a job in Thing-dong, but it didn’t work out because of the corona. It was hard for Sergeant Byun to change each time. So, I deliberately called every week in Thing-dong, gave various activities, and gave me an hourly wage. To be able to maintain a certain level of social life routine.” ―When you interviewed me last year, Sergeant Byun was energetic and optimistic, but which part did you suffer the most? “I don’t know the specific details because Thing-Dong consulted, but there may be multiple reasons. The biggest thing is probably the betrayal of the military. Sergeant Byun thought of a soldier as a vocation to the point that all of his friends said it was Mildeok (abbreviation for soldier’deokhu’). I think there was great frustration about being expelled from such a world for nonsense. In addition, I would have felt that I was falling behind in society because my job search was not working well, and I think the situation that the number of lawsuits was increasing was a psychological burden.” Sergeant Byun knocked on the door of the Military Rights Center in June 2019 when he started hormone therapy, saying, “I am trying to change sex. Can you help me?” Until then, it was receiving sufficient support from superiors such as the corps commander and brigade commander. Before leaving the country for surgery in Thailand in October of that year, the unit supervisors not only approved the overseas travel for the purpose of surgery, but also sent an encouraging message stating,’I hope you will be able to do the surgery and return soon.’ “I would support all of my choices, but I asked if it would be okay if there is a risk in transition (sex change). After the operation and return, there is one thing I asked for. If the military asked me to do a medical examination, they told me not to do so. If you do that, you will go straight to the evaluation, so he said to hold on. But one day, I contacted him saying that he had undergone a mandatory examination. When I heard that, Sergeant Byeon said,’Why did I do that?’ through Kakao Talk, and Sergeant Byeon asked me,’The military admitted it and sent it overseas, but the warden was too negative to see the military.’ As much as he believed in the military, he had the hope of remaining in the military. He was cruel to someone who really loved him.”
Sergeant Byun Hee-soo smiles wide after receiving a congratulatory cake at the Military Rights Center after the gender correction was made in February last year. Provided by Tae-Hoon Lim
―The front line and fellow soldiers are open-minded, but the top of the military seems to be still wet with an old accident, right? “Yes. Even during the Election Commission, the frontline commanders issued comments supporting Sergeant Byun’s service. People with military power should accept that as much as possible. It’s another violence. There was no logical basis for why I made that decision, and since I had genitals removed, I gave a ridiculous reason that it was a mental and physical disorder. Based on a research report by the Rand Institute, a military and security think tank (‘Assessing the implications of allowing transgender personnel to serve openly’), the United States allowed full enlistment of transgender people in 2016. And exactly inverted. I think the problem is not only with the head of the military, but also with the security office of the Blue House. Sergeant Byun was kicked out because the security office held that position. This should have been done by the President. The Human Rights Commission decided urgent relief prior to the discharge, so if you respect the status of the Human Rights Commission, the President should step out and give orders to the Ministry of Defense and the military at least temporarily suspend or give a sign to reconsider at least once. In this way, some ministries will follow the decision of the NHRCK in the future. If you say’no coercion’, it’s over. As a former human rights lawyer, I am sorry that President Moon Jae-in should have shown a different aspect.”
Sergeant Byun Hee-soo (a black suit and glasses in the middle) is spending time with LGBTQ parents in August last year. Provided by Tae-Hoon Lim
Courts that are lagging behind the Alternative Station Review Committee
Lim, who has been advocating for LGBTI people’s rights since college, refused military service in 2004, demanding the abolition of the military criminal law punishing homosexuals and conscription tests that treat homosexuality as a mental illness. For this reason, he was sentenced to one year and six months in prison, but Amnesty International and others selected him as a prisoner of conscience and campaigned for release. After his release in August 2005, he participated in a research project of the National Human Rights Commission, a survey on the status of military rights, and established the Military Rights Center (2009), a civil organization dedicated to human rights issues of soldiers. The Military Rights Center has taken the lead in devising measures to improve by prosecuting anti-human rights behaviors such as assault and sexual violence in the military, such as the so-called’Private Yoon incident’ (2014), which died due to group beatings of senior soldiers. And the incident planned to trigger the commander was also uncovered. ―If we win Sergeant Byeon’s reinstatement lawsuit, will there be any change in the military? “At least in the future, military action against transgender soldiers will become impossible. There are quite a few soldiers currently undergoing transgender hormone therapy, but there is a barrier against them. Beyond that, I hope that the Ministry of National Defense and the military can use it as an opportunity to quickly change policies. In an era where diversity is important, we cannot always maintain discriminatory provisions. I just hope that it will become an army that embraces LGBTQ people, and it will serve as a driving force for the enactment of the anti-discrimination law socially as well. However, not only the military but also the judiciary, which should be a bastion of human rights, seems to be quite underdeveloped. Even if Sergeant Byeon’s trial was a human rights violation, it should have been done quickly, but the first trial was caught in eight months. The recent Supreme Court ruling (February 25) against Hong Jung-hoon and Oh Kyung-taek, who refused military service based on peaceful beliefs, is an example of the low human rights consciousness of the judiciary. Does it make sense to send the person who led the introduction of the alternative service system (Hong Jung-hoon) to jail? The Military Manpower Administration’s Alternative Service Review Committee accepted refusal of military service based on peaceful beliefs at the same time. The judiciary’s human rights consciousness is inferior to the alternative station jury, which has many conservative figures.” The coming 31st is an international anniversary to visualize the existence of transgender people. Air Force Commissioner Byun Hee-soo is preparing for intensive action, such as holding a rally around the Ministry of Defense on the 27th of the weekend ahead of the day of transgender visualization. Senior Reporter Kim Jong-cheol [email protected]