[Editorial] Sexual harassment in military---a shock

The growing number of cases of sexual harassment in the workplace has become a serious social problem, but more shocking is the revelation that a division commander was accused of sexually assaulting a female subordinate in the military barracks. The fact that a high-ranking military commander, who has heavy responsibility to strictly maintain and enforce military discipline, was relieved of his post and referred to a military disciplinary committee for punishment poses a grave question about the state of morale and morality in our national military.

The division commander in question was said to have had the female officer accompany him to a dinner with some local dignitaries, where she was made to serve them drinks and was ultimately subject to inappropriate physical contact. This kind of behavior should be condemned for degrading the dignity of the military.

The military is an organization in which rank and discipline must be respected and orders and obedience strictly maintained. But because the commander confused the relationship between soldiers with relations between the sexes, he was consequently arraigned on sexual harassment charges. A similar case was revealed in June last year, when a division commander danced with the wife of a subordinate at a banquet and sexually harassed her.

What's more, last year-end, some executives of local garment manufacturing firms took their female employees to a military compound and had them serve dinner to the officers and enlisted men of the unit.

The women were later compelled to make dates with the military officials. The occasion may have been meant to promote sales of their products, but the unit commanders should not have remained indifferent to what was going on. Afterwards, the Army authorities handed down a set of regulations for dealing with sexual harassment in military compounds. As was shown in the latest incident, however, sexual harassment has hardly disappeared, especially among high-ranking officials.

Such sexual assault cases in the military are in fact even more serious than they would be in civilian life, as they are committed in closed communities. What's worse, many cases have been covered up. With some cases of sexual harassment having been uncovered despite all attempts at containment, it is assumed that many other incidents have taken place and that, thus, the military leadership has failed to take proper preventative measures.

In the future, the roles of female soldiers will become even more essential as they move from computer operations and administrative work to combat duty. In order to cultivate the best characteristics and merits of female soldiers, the military should not undermine their morale or their zeal to work.

In order to wipe out sexual harassment, the military also will have to regain the public's confidence by severely disciplining military commanders who harass their female subordinates. Military authorities must move swiftly to prevent the recurrence of such shameful incidents in the future.