During the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2022, Korean national team esports players won gold medals, making esports the first ever competitive sport that was granted military service exemptions. As a result of this decision and the ensuing debate, artists and athletes are once again debating military service exemptions.

Historically, South Korea has exempted gold medal winners from full military service when they win gold medals at international sporting events. As a contribution to their respective fields, these individuals would serve for 3 weeks of basic military training and 544 hours of volunteer work instead of nearly 2 years. In this case, the substitute service would fulfill their military duties as mandated by the state. 

The Korean national team, led by Lee Sang Hyeok – a.k.a. Faker – and the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) in League of Legends, defeated Taiwan in the finals of the popular online game during the Hangzhou Asian Games.

In addition to the controversy, the Asian Games introduced break dancing (b-boying) as a competitive category for the first time, with South Korea considered a strong contender. The legendary b-boy Hong 10 (Kim Hong Yul), who has already fulfilled his military service, won silver in the b-boy competition.

B-boying or breakdancing has made significant progress with its inclusion in the 2024 Paris Olympics. In light of this recognition, there has been a renewed discussion about extending exemptions to popular artists with significant global impact, such as members of the top-selling South Korean band, BTS.

Although there are fair conditions under which participants in exempted competitions compete, popular culture award ceremonies tend to vary, with evaluations based on performance and other factors that are determined over a sustained period of time. On the other hand, no internationally recognized competitions in popular culture would qualify for exemptions from military service.

As of now, 42 competition categories are eligible for military service exemptions as arts and sports personnel. A vast discrepancy exists when compared with popular culture, which does not have any international competitions. Awards such as the American Music Awards and Billboard Music Awards won by BTS are not considered equivalent to international competitions.

It is evident that there is no clear standard for evaluating individual contributions to popular culture promotion. According to experts, if military service exemption criteria are to be established for contemporary artists, they must be measurable, diverse, and distinct. Popular culture critic Ha Jae Geun cautioned against endorsing one particular criterion. In its place, he proposed a system that would combine the scores from a number of international music charts and award ceremonies in order to reach an overall judgment of the music.

Another critic, Jeong Deok-hyun, recommended a score-based approach based on diversity. Despite the ambiguity of the criteria, he said that it would be worth considering if the public believed that BTS, given their exceptional global presence, should be exempt from military service. Instead of standardizing the criteria, we could have a variety of them and assign scores to each, then evaluate the overall total.”

Korean popular culture has become more prominent on the global stage due to the shifting landscape of international competitions. The debate on military service exemptions in South Korea is far from over. While the process must remain fair, it must also be flexible enough to consider the ever-changing scopes of art, culture, and sports.

Popular artists are also viewed as ineligible for military service exemptions, as their activities are based on personal gain rather than national interests. 

As Lim Jin Mo noted on MBC’s ‘100-minute Debate’ in September of last year, while acknowledging BTS’s achievements, he also stressed that, “While they deserve recognition and awards, it shouldn’t be linked to military service exemptions or exclusions.”.”

According to him, it could cause unfairness among young people of the same generation approaching military service, and added, “Public artists, unlike those in other fields, receive significant social recognition upon their success. This recognition has been enjoyed by BTS as well.”

A survey conducted by the Korean Gallup last year found that 59% of respondents aged 18 and above nationwide support military service exemptions for public artists, while 33% opposed them.