6 in 10 South Koreans back female conscription: poll

Six in 10 South Koreans favor extending mandatory military service to women amid a growing debate over how to address a declining number of potential conscripts due to the low birth rate, a new survey showed Thursday. The nationwide survey of 1,006 adults by the Reform Institute, a policy research arm of the minor conservative Reform Party, found 59.6 percent in favor of the idea, compared with 34 percent against it, a difference of 25.6 percentage points. More than half of both men and women su