They rappel off an 11m height in seconds, run with an open parachute strapped to their shoulders, march with a heavy pack and brave a gas-filled chamber.
It could be a typical day at the South Korean army’s Special Warfare Command base in western Seoul — except that the “soldiers” are teenage boys and young women, often accompanied by their families.
The army’s twice-yearly “boot camps” for civilians, offering basic military training for four days, began in 2003 and have proved a big hit. They are open to anyone aged over 13 who pays 40,000 won (US$36) and have drawn more than 17,000 people so far.
Photo: AFP
Military culture is deeply ingrained in South Korea and all able-bodied men are subject to a mandatory two years of conscription to guard against attacks from North Korea.
Boot camps — run by the military or private firms — have become increasingly popular in recent years, drawing people ranging from nostalgic veterans to schoolchildren, company employees and those seeking special family vacations.
“Boys obviously make up the biggest part because they have the mandatory service coming up,” said Major Lee Joo-ho, a boot camp spokesman. “But more young women are showing an interest, since they were allowed to join a college-based officer commissioning program last year.”
On a typical day this month the muddy training field at Gangseo echoed to squeals, screams and shouts from 230 participants on their third day of training.
In pouring rain, youths practiced a mock parachute landing — jumping into a sandbox with their hands in the air and repeating instructions to land on the balls of the feet.
“Yes, sir! I can do it!” they shouted, hitching up baggy, rain-drenched uniform trousers with sneakers peeking out underneath.
“Let me hear your voice! Shout out your girlfriend’s name real loud!” a military instructor commands a boy climbing down a cable from a 20m platform to simulate a descent from a helicopter.
The nervous-looking trainee murmurs inaudibly, prompting the stern-looking commando to grab the cable and leave him in mid-air.
“Is this what you got? Louder!” he orders repeatedly, until the boy finally yells “I love you, Choi Yoon!” and is allowed to descend.
Fifteen-year-old Yeom Hyuck said he was “very nervous but thrilled” before he hurled himself off an 11m parachute jump tower and ziplined to the ground.
“Everything is fun — but right now I miss my parents,” he said.
Kim Tae-Hoon, 17, said his father’s dream of joining the army was foiled by poor eyesight. The father pushed his son to attend camp as soon as he turned 13. Since then, Kim has been back every summer and winter — a total of nine times.
“This is so good at relieving stress and much more fun than just playing computer games,” he said.
Since last winter Kim has been joined by his younger brother Tae-Hun, who found it “so thrilling” even to experience the gas-filled chamber, designed to test training against chemical attacks.
“I’m glad I’ve lost some weight ... and I feel more like a man,” said the chubby, red-cheeked 13-year-old.
Not everyone was so thrilled. Cho Byung-Chan, panting hard after rappel training, said he was “a little bit” angry with his parents for sending him.
“They said I need to grow up,” said the 15-year-old, who usually spends school breaks playing computer games.
“It’s hard ... I’m hungry,” he said.
Former army commando Yoon Jeong-Sik was spending his summer vacation at the boot camp with his two daughters and wife, 24 years after retiring from the same unit.
Yoon said he wants his family to learn what he did — self-confidence, pride and how to get along with others.
“So I cajoled my ladies into coming here for character education,” said the 47-year-old, water dripping from his hair and soaking his uniform after a mock river crossing.
“At first they were pretty jolly since they had no idea how hard it would be ... now I’m trying not to meet their eyes,” he said, bursting into laughter with his family.
‘GREAT OPPRTUNITY’: The Paraguayan president made the remarks following Donald Trump’s tapping of several figures with deep Latin America expertise for his Cabinet Paraguay President Santiago Pena called US president-elect Donald Trump’s incoming foreign policy team a “dream come true” as his nation stands to become more relevant in the next US administration. “It’s a great opportunity for us to advance very, very fast in the bilateral agenda on trade, security, rule of law and make Paraguay a much closer ally” to the US, Pena said in an interview in Washington ahead of Trump’s inauguration today. “One of the biggest challenges for Paraguay was that image of an island surrounded by land, a country that was isolated and not many people know about it,”
DIALOGUE: US president-elect Donald Trump on his Truth Social platform confirmed that he had spoken with Xi, saying ‘the call was a very good one’ for the US and China US president-elect Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) discussed Taiwan, trade, fentanyl and TikTok in a phone call on Friday, just days before Trump heads back to the White House with vows to impose tariffs and other measures on the US’ biggest rival. Despite that, Xi congratulated Trump on his second term and pushed for improved ties, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The call came the same day that the US Supreme Court backed a law banning TikTok unless it is sold by its China-based parent company. “We both attach great importance to interaction, hope for
‘FIGHT TO THE END’: Attacking a court is ‘unprecedented’ in South Korea and those involved would likely face jail time, a South Korean political pundit said Supporters of impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol yesterday stormed a Seoul court after a judge extended the impeached leader’s detention over his ill-fated attempt to impose martial law. Tens of thousands of people had gathered outside the Seoul Western District Court on Saturday in a show of support for Yoon, who became South Korea’s first sitting head of state to be arrested in a dawn raid last week. After the court extended his detention on Saturday, the president’s supporters smashed windows and doors as they rushed inside the building. Hundreds of police officers charged into the court, arresting dozens and denouncing an
RELEASE: The move follows Washington’s removal of Havana from its list of terrorism sponsors. Most of the inmates were arrested for taking part in anti-government protests Cuba has freed 127 prisoners, including opposition leader Jose Daniel Ferrer, in a landmark deal with departing US President Joe Biden that has led to emotional reunions across the communist island. Ferrer, 54, is the most high-profile of the prisoners that Cuba began freeing on Wednesday after Biden agreed to remove the country from Washington’s list of terrorism sponsors — part of an eleventh-hour bid to cement his legacy before handing power on Monday to US president-elect Donald Trump. “Thank God we have him home,” Nelva Ortega said of her husband, Ferrer, who has been in and out of prison for the
RSS