韓国で兵役拒否のエホバの証人信者ら、刑務所に　服役ではなく研修

【大田ＡＦＰ＝時事】韓国で26日、「良心的兵役拒否」を表明した宗教団体「エホバの証人」の信者らが、スーツにネクタイ姿で刑務所前に列をつくった。しかし兵役拒否者らはこれまでのように服役するのではなく、刑務所職員として研修を受ける。（写真は韓国・大田の刑務所前に並ぶ、兵役拒否を表明した宗教団体「エホバの証人」の信者ら）
　厳密には依然として北朝鮮と戦争状態にある韓国は、１２０万人の北朝鮮軍から自国を防衛するため、徴兵制を維持している。
　数十年もの間、兵役拒否者らには有罪とみなされて服役する以外の道はなく、一生残る汚名を着せられてきた。それでも良心的兵役拒否者は計数万人に上り、このうちの多くがエホバの証人の信者らで、信仰を守るために進んでこの代償を払ってきた。
　しかし２６日、宗教・道徳上の理由に基づく兵役拒否者らのための新たな制度が発効。これにより、拒否者らには刑務所職員として、通常の兵役期間の２倍の３年間の服務が義務付けられる。
　この制度下で服務する第一陣となったエホバの証人の信者ら６３人は同日、首都ソウル南郊にある大田の刑務所に到着。現地は明るい雰囲気に包まれ、家族と笑顔で抱擁を交わす姿が見られた。
　これは、新兵訓練所の入り口で髪をそったばかりの若い男性らが、涙を浮かべながら愛する人々に別れのあいさつをする、通常の兵役の始まりとは対照的な光景となった。
　韓国では健康な全男性に対し、３０歳を迎える前に１年半の兵役が義務付けられている。この制度は時に強い反発にさらされる一方で、同期の兵士らと一生の絆を結ぶことにもつながり、一つの通過儀礼となっている。
　しかし韓国大法院（最高裁）が２０１８年、宗教・道徳上の信条を兵役拒否の正当な理由と認める判断を示したことで、良心的兵役拒否者らが犯罪者扱いされずに済む道が開かれた。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2020/10/27-12:23）

Dozens of South Korean Jehovah's Witnesses in suits and ties lined up to enter a prison on Monday -- to begin training as administrators, rather than the jail terms they used to face as conscientious objectors.
The South remains technically at war with the North and maintains a compulsory conscription system to defend itself against Pyongyang's 1.2 million-strong army.
For decades the only alternative was conviction and jail, and with it lifelong stigma, but in total tens of thousands of conscientious objectors, many of them Jehovah's Witnesses, have been willing to pay that price to adhere to their beliefs.
A new scheme for those who object to bearing arms on religious or moral grounds went into effect on Monday, requiring them to work as prison administrators for three years -- twice the length of normal conscription.
The first to benefit were 63 Jehovah's Witnesses who arrived at the Daejeon Correctional Facility south of Seoul in cheerful mood, exchanging joyful hugs with family members.
The sacrifices of countless people had made his alternative service possible, said Shin Dong-gil, 26.
This moment has come to us because of those brothers who faithfully defended their beliefs, he told AFP.
It was a marked contrast to the start of normal military conscription, when young men with freshly-shaved heads and tearful eyes bid farewell to their loved ones at the entrance to boot camp.
All able-bodied South Korean men are obliged to serve for 18 months before they turn 30, in a rite of passage that -- while sometimes resented -- can form lifelong bonds with fellow soldiers.
Avoiding the duty in a conformist society faced with the world's last remaining Cold War conflict can bring with it employment consequences and lifelong social stigma.
But a landmark Supreme Court ruling in 2018 accepted religious and moral principles as legitimate reasons to oppose military service, paving the way for conscientious objectors to avoid becoming convicts.
The 63 who began their duties on Monday will undergo a three-week course before being dispatched to jailhouses around the country, where they will be entitled to the same pay as regular conscripts.
Shin was accompanied to the Daejeon facility by his brother-in-law Lee Yang-sub, himself a former inmate as a conscientious objector.
I am really happy that my brother-in-law is able to take part in this alternative service, Lee told AFP, adding he had no regrets over having to serve time for his faith.