I suffered military insubordination; what happens if I report it?

Hello. This is a military law attorney at Daeryun Law LLC.

Military insubordination refers to acts of violence within the military, including physical and mental attacks committed by a subordinate against a superior.

If you report Corporal A, Corporal A will be subject to the following punishments under the Military Criminal Act.

▶Assault and intimidation of a superior: in the case of being before the enemy, imprisonment for not less than 1 year and not more than 10 years; in other cases, imprisonment for up to 5 years

▶Special assault and intimidation of a superior: in the case of being before the enemy, the death penalty, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than 5 years; in other cases, life imprisonment or imprisonment for up to 2 years

▶Assault of a superior resulting in death or injury: in the case of being before the enemy, the death penalty, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than 10 years; in time of war, incident, or in a martial law area, the death penalty, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than 5 years; in other cases, life imprisonment or imprisonment for not less than 5 years

▶Infliction of bodily injury on a superior: in the case of being before the enemy, life imprisonment or imprisonment for not less than 3 years; in other cases, imprisonment for a definite term of not less than 1 year

▶Killing of a superior: the death penalty or life imprisonment

Violence and cruel acts within the military, such as insubordination, can be reported directly to the military prosecution or the military police, and reports can also be made through an external body such as the National Human Rights Commission.

You may hesitate to report out of fear that your safety could be endangered, but any act of imposing disadvantages on the ground of a legitimate report is subject to separate disciplinary action and criminal punishment.

Military insubordination must never be tolerated, and it is a matter dealt with severely under the Military Criminal Act.

Daeryun, the 9th largest law firm in Korea (based on 2025 National Tax Service value-added tax filings), will promptly establish a response plan tailored to your situation.