East Detention Center Surpasses 900 Inmates... Will the Ministry of Justice's 'Belated Measures' Work? (Comprehensive 2)

Deputy Minister Lee Yong-gu "Will Also Address Inmates' Anxiety"... Admits Inadequate Measures, Repeatedly Apologizes

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] The cumulative number of confirmed COVID-19 cases at Seoul Eastern Detention Center has surpassed 900. Following the fourth full-scale testing of staff and inmates, 126 inmates tested positive, bringing the total to 918. After the Eastern Detention Center, a COVID-19 positive inmate also died at Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province. Although the Ministry of Justice hastily announced COVID-19 countermeasures, criticism over the initial failure of national institutions in quarantine and delayed administrative responses is expected to continue.

On the 31st, the Ministry of Justice announced COVID-19 measures for correctional facilities nationwide and decided to take immediate action. Before the briefing, Deputy Minister of Justice Lee Yong-gu said, "I sincerely apologize to the public for causing concern regarding the outbreak of mass infections of COVID-19." This marked the first time in over a month since the first confirmed case at Eastern Detention Center on the 27th of last month that a senior Ministry of Justice official issued an apology.

Deputy Minister Lee also stated that they would pay attention to the stability of inmates. He said, "We are aware through reports that inmates are considerably anxious," and added, "We will make every effort to ensure stability in the lives of inmates using all available means."

First, the Ministry of Justice will apply a three-level social distancing system to correctional facilities nationwide for the next two weeks. This means that visits, work, education, and other inmate treatments will be fully restricted to minimize contact between inmates. In particular, visits by lawyers will also be limited. Staff will immediately enter an emergency work system, and external activities will be prohibited in principle.

Additional transfers to reduce the inmate density at Eastern Detention Center, the epicenter of this mass infection, are also being considered. The Ministry of Justice had previously stated that since 345 confirmed cases were transferred to Cheongsong Prison, the density at Eastern Detention Center would not exceed 120% even if new confirmed cases remained there. However, as more confirmed cases continued to emerge, they ultimately decided to consider other transfer locations.

Parole will also be expanded for model inmates, excluding labor prisoners and those with underlying conditions that could worsen severely. This is also a measure to reduce density within correctional facilities. The Supreme Prosecutors' Office, considering the lack of additional capacity in correctional facilities, decided the day before to reduce the number of labor detention inmates due to unpaid fines, which account for about 20% of new inmates.

KF94 masks will be distributed to all inmates and staff in correctional facilities nationwide at a rate of three masks per person per week. Deputy Minister Lee revealed, "From the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak until November 21, only three confirmed inmates were reported in correctional institutions nationwide," and added, "Therefore, we judged that prevention was sufficiently possible with cloth or dental masks."

Additionally, measures to prevent further spread from asymptomatic individuals will be implemented. Rapid antigen tests will be conducted for all staff and inmates in correctional facilities to fundamentally block infections caused by asymptomatic carriers.

However, criticism of delayed administration is unavoidable as government-level measures were only announced a month after the first confirmed COVID-19 case at Eastern Detention Center on the 27th of last month. During the rapid increase to over 800 confirmed cases in a month, Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae, who is responsible for managing and supervising correctional facilities, as well as Deputy Minister Lee, were embroiled in various controversies and neglected quarantine measures.

In particular, Minister Choo faced criticism for visiting the Ansan Probation Office instead of Eastern Detention Center on the 29th, when the mass infection at Eastern Detention Center had reached its worst. On the 28th, when inmates were transferred from Eastern Detention Center due to the surge in confirmed cases, she posted on her personal YouTube account a message titled "Yoon Seok-yeol impeachment, no backlash will come." She only visited the site after the number of confirmed cases in correctional facilities exceeded 700, and even that evening, she expressed only that she found the return of Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol "hard to accept."

The fact that Deputy Minister Lee, not Minister Choo, made the announcement that day also became a subject of controversy. Although Minister Choo's resignation was accepted the day before and a new Minister of Justice was appointed, Minister Choo was to remain in charge until the new minister's appointment, making it appear as if she was trying to avoid responsibility. Ultimately, Deputy Minister Lee apologized on her behalf. He stated, "I once again apologize to the public for this incident caused by the limitations of detention facilities and insufficient preemptive quarantine measures."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.