Press Conference on Lawsuit Challenging the Defense Ministry’s Refusal to Disclose the “Transgender Military Service” Research Report
There is no reason to keep publicly-funded research results secret.
The Ministry of National Defense must disclose the research findings and responsibly answer the question left by the late Sergeant Byeon Hee-soo.
The Ministry of National Defense must release the research report. Access to information cannot be denied on vague grounds of 'national security.'
Date & Time: Wednesday, May 20, 10:30 AM | Venue: In front of the Seoul Administrative Court
Co-hosted by: Rainbow Action, After the Blacklist, Open Net Korea, Citizens' Coalition for Media Reform, Human Rights Movement Network Baram, Information Disclosure Center for a Transparent Society, Minority Rights Committee of the Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun)
In 2021, the Ministry of National Defense commissioned the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses (KIDA) to conduct a study on 'transgender military service.' This was intended to answer the question that the late Sergeant Byeon Hee-soo posed to our society — whether transgender individuals can serve in the military and what institutional support the military should provide to make that possible. However, despite having received the final report, the Ministry of National Defense has yet to disclose the research findings.
The report is known to contain the results of surveys on soldiers' and the public's perceptions of transgender military service, as well as detailed policy scenarios regarding the requirements, procedures, and conditions for restricting or recognizing such service. The Ministry had previously stated that it would "determine whether to reform relevant regulations based on the research findings." Yet even after the results were produced, the Ministry has kept them secret and continues to avoid public discussion on the critical human rights issue of LGBTQ+ military service. Now that the research findings exist, the Ministry of National Defense must disclose them and engage in open social deliberation and accountable responses.
Accordingly, Open Net filed a request for information disclosure regarding the 'Research Report on Transgender Military Service' (filed on February 24, 2026). The Ministry of National Defense transferred the request to KIDA, which offered only a vague explanation that "disclosure is restricted at the request of the commissioning department," and issued a non-disclosure decision on the grounds that the report constitutes information that, "if disclosed, could seriously harm the nation's vital interests," pertaining to matters of national security, national defense, unification, and foreign relations under the Official Information Disclosure Act.
However, this research is a policy study on institutional frameworks and human rights protections for transgender military service, and it is difficult to see how its disclosure could pose any serious threat to national security. Moreover, the grounds for non-disclosure under the Official Information Disclosure Act must be interpreted strictly, and administrative agencies are required to provide sufficient explanation of what specific risks would arise from disclosure. Despite this, the Ministry of National Defense and KIDA withheld the entire research report citing only vague and abstract justifications — a decision that runs counter to the public's right to know and the principle of administrative transparency, and therefore constitutes an unlawful disposition.
Open Net, which filed the request for disclosure of the research report, along with the legal team from the Minority Rights Committee of Minbyun, strongly condemns the Ministry of National Defense and KIDA for their continued refusal to disclose the findings without providing any justifiable grounds, and hereby files an administrative lawsuit seeking the revocation of the non-disclosure decision.
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