Foreign Detention Center 'Saewookkeokgi' Human Rights Violation Confirmed... Ministry of Justice "Promoting Recurrence Prevention and System Improvement"

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] Regarding the harsh treatment incident of foreign detainees at Hwaseong Immigration Detention Center, the Ministry of Justice revealed that there were human rights violations, including the use of protective equipment in ways not based on legal grounds. The Ministry of Justice acknowledged the facts of the so-called harsh treatment called 'saewookkeokgi' and announced plans to promote institutional improvements.

On the 1st, the Ministry of Justice held a briefing on the "Investigation Results and Improvement Measures of the Hwaseong Immigration Detention Center Human Rights Violation Incident" at the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office conference room, chaired by Lee Sang-gap, Director of the Legal Affairs Office, and announced improvement measures including these details.

In March, Mr. A, a Moroccan national who was detained at Hwaseong Immigration Detention Center following a deportation order, claimed that he was subjected to harsh treatment in the form of 'saewookkeokgi' while protesting in solitary confinement. 'Saewookkeokgi' refers to a method where handcuffs are used to bind the wrists behind the back and the ankles are tied with a restraint rope.

When this incident became controversial, the Ministry of Justice explained that it was an unavoidable measure for self-harm prevention and safety, but accepted the concerns raised by the media and civic groups and conducted a fact-finding investigation, including interviewing Mr. A. As a result of the investigation, the Ministry of Justice judged that the staff were not sufficiently familiar with the use of protective equipment and that there were no clear regulations on how to use protective equipment when foreign detainees engage in self-harm or disruptive behavior. However, it was found that the implementation of special custody as a response to Mr. A's violent behavior, property damage, and attacks on staff was in accordance with current regulations.

Accordingly, the Ministry of Justice plans to revise the "Foreigners Protection Rules related to the Use of Protective Equipment" to prevent abuse of protective equipment and to amend regulations related to the procedures and duration of special custody. Specifically, in cases where the use of protective equipment is unavoidable, the types of permissible protective equipment will be explicitly limited, and a regulation prohibiting the use of equipment other than those listed in the rules will be codified.

In particular, keeping in mind that the incident recurred despite the National Human Rights Commission's recommendation in April last year to disseminate human rights violation cases and conduct job training on similar matters, the Ministry plans to revise the regulations to require that the Human Rights Bureau's opinion must be heard when there is a recommendation from the Human Rights Commission.

Additionally, the regulations related to the procedures and duration of special custody will be improved, making it mandatory to provide an opportunity for the foreign detainees subject to special custody, which is currently arbitrarily regulated, to express their opinions, thereby strengthening procedural rights. In this regard, a regulation will also be introduced to immediately terminate special custody once the reasons for its implementation cease to exist.

Furthermore, by collecting opinions from various sectors that the protection procedures under the Immigration Control Act have significant human rights infringement elements, fundamental measures such as reducing the number of foreign detainees will be prepared. Lee Sang-gap, Director of the Legal Affairs Office of the Ministry of Justice, stated, "Fundamentally, along with reducing the number of detainees, we will prepare measures to guarantee freedom within the facilities as much as possible, moving toward practical protection facilities and non-detention facilities."

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