Human Rights Commission: "Overcrowding in Correctional Facilities is a Human Rights Violation"... Urges Prompt Improvement

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The National Human Rights Commission announced on the 31st that it has recommended the Minister of Justice to promptly prepare improvement measures for the issue of overcrowding in correctional facilities.

The Human Rights Commission stated, "We have conducted on-site investigations and ex officio investigations regarding the issue of overcrowding in correctional facilities and have issued recommendations 10 times, but the related issues remain unresolved and prolonged." The Commission added, "Overcrowding in correctional facilities constitutes inhumane treatment that undermines human dignity."

Earlier, a complaint was filed with the Human Rights Commission last year alleging that A Detention Center was infringing on human rights by using rooms exceeding capacity as accommodation facilities. In response, the detention center explained, "Due to COVID-19, securing isolation rooms has tended to worsen overcrowding," and "We are gradually improving through new construction, expansion, and remodeling of correctional institutions."

According to the Human Rights Commission's investigation, 8 to 10 people lived together in the rooms in question at A Detention Center. The area per person was only 1.52 to 1.90 square meters. The Commission judged, "It was a cramped space where an average adult male had to be careful even when sleeping to avoid bumping into other inmates," and "The minimum space necessary for basic human living was not secured."

The Human Rights Commission also rejected A Detention Center's claim that overcrowding worsened due to COVID-19. The Commission cited the following reasons for this judgment: ▲ overcrowding is a serious issue that can be regarded as an abuse of state penal power; ▲ the restrictions on inmates' mobility and external communication rights due to COVID-19 exacerbate the suffering caused by overcrowding; ▲ the problem of overcrowding has not been resolved and has become chronic and prolonged.

The Human Rights Commission further explained, "The act of the respondent detaining the complainant in rooms exceeding the capacity per area as stipulated by the Ministry of Justice regulations infringes on the right to pursue happiness guaranteed by Article 10 of the Constitution and the freedom of the body guaranteed by Article 12 of the same law."

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