Controversy is arising as a national petition has been raised saying that soldiers returning to Korea after completing the mission to dispatch overseas troops should buy COVID-19 self-isolation items at their own expense.

The Ministry of National Defense refuted that it is not true that self-isolation aids are supported by local governments, and that self-isolation items are paid at their own expense.

According to the Blue House National Petition Bulletin, a petition titled'The soldiers returning home from overseas dispatch missions are also citizens of the Republic of Korea' posted on the 27th of this month received the consent of about 18,500 people.

The author, who introduced himself as the wife of a member of the Lebanese Dongmyeong Corps, who is about to return to Korea, said, "The family (Dongmyeongbu) asked me to'I need to bring the necessary supplies myself.'" "Thermometer, hand sanitizer, mask, "It was referring to basic self-isolation aids such as emergency food," he claimed.

He said, "I heard why I have to prepare self-isolation aids that citizens as well as foreigners can receive unconditionally. It was because the Dongmyeong troops did not provide relief supplies because they are not citizens of the local government in self-isolation."

The Ministry of National Defense refuted, "In principle, self-isolation is a rule for returning troops from overseas, and self-isolation aids are supported by each local government."

The Ministry of Defense emphasized that "the availability of food kits varies by local government," and stressed that it is not that food kits are not provided because they are not citizens and soldiers.

This explains that the goods provided to foreign immigrants who are self-isolated differ by local government.

In fact, all 76 members of the Dongmyeong Corps who returned for the first time on the 20th of this month received all of the local government's quarantine supplies, but since food kits were only provided by six local governments, only some of them received ramen.

The Ministry of Defense said that the claim of self-pay quarantine in a national petition was also different from the facts.

When another member of the Ark Corps, another overseas contingent, was unable to self-isolate after returning to Korea, it was argued that he used private facilities with personal expenses of 2 to 3 million won.

The Ministry of Defense emphasized that military personnel who are unable to self-isolate at home because they have family members can self-isolate at the facilities.

The Ministry of National Defense said, "Of the 76 people who returned to the first stage, 72 are self-isolation, and 4 are being quarantined at subsidiary facilities according to their personal wishes." "Of the 190 members of the Dongmyeong Corps scheduled to return to the second stage on September 10, 154 are self-quarantine, Accordingly, 36 people will be quarantined at the facilities."

In the case of the Ark unit mentioned in the national petition, 111 of the 130 returnees were self-contained and 18 were quarantined.

The other one did not want to quarantine the unit, so they used private facilities at their own expense, about 1.5 million won.

(Photo = Courtesy of Yonhap News TV, Yonhap News)