24 Article 18 20. Regarding the Punishment of Conscientious Objection to Military Service According to the Analytical Report on Conscientious Objection to Military Service published by the UNHRC in 2013, among the 723 conscientious objectors imprisoned in the world in 2012, 669 (92.5%) were Koreans. According to the Military Manpower Administration data, as of June 13, 2013, 6,090 people had objected to military service for reasons of religion or personal belief during the last ten year period. Among them, 5,695 (93.5%) objectors’ sentences were confirmed and 5,669 (93.1%) were imprisoned. Bills to implement an alternative service system for conscientious objectors were submitted twice in 2004 during the 17th session of the National Assembly (20042008), but both were discarded after the session expired in 2009. During the 18th session (2008-2012), bills to attempt the implementation of the alternative service system for conscientious objectors were submitted again on two occasions but were also discarded after the session expired in 2012. During the current 19th session, another bill to implement the alternative service system was submitted in 2013 and is currently pending (para. 264-270). Question Does the Government have plans to acknowledge the right of Conscientious Objection to Military Service and to implement an alternative service system?