[In-Depth Review] 10th Anniversary of the Refugee Act, The Path Forward for Korea's Refugee Law

Published 13 Jun.2022 11:23(KST)

This year marks the 30th anniversary of South Korea's accession to the Refugee Convention (hereinafter the Refugee Convention) and the 10th anniversary of the enactment of the Refugee Act. By joining the Refugee Convention in 1992, the Korean government assumed legal obligations to protect refugees in the international community, and in 2012, it established the current refugee recognition screening system by enacting the Refugee Act, the first independent law implementing the Refugee Convention in Asia. However, refugee policy is operating not to support refugees but to block, deport, and exclude them.

Looking at the amendment to the Refugee Act proposed by the government at the end of last year, this is evident. The government’s amendment states the reason for the proposal as "to prevent the refugee screening system from being abused as a means to extend stay." It intends to skip the interview investigation and make a ‘disqualification’ decision if applicants for reapplication fail to prove significant changes in circumstances at the time of application. It is true that the backlog in refugee screening is a serious problem. The backlog leads to prolonged screening, and there are frequent cases where refugee applicants do not receive results even after 3 or 5 years since applying. Those who suffer in this situation are the refugee applicants waiting for an uncertain period, and measures to conduct screening quickly and accurately are absolutely necessary. However, the government shifts the cause of the backlog onto the refugee applicants and claims that the introduction of such disqualification procedures is a measure to prevent delays in screening.

The problem is that the current refugee recognition screening system in South Korea is not properly functioning, resulting in refugees not being recognized as refugees. According to the 2021 domestic refugee status statistics by the Refugee Human Rights Center, only 72 people were recognized as refugees last year, recording a 1% refugee recognition rate. Although this is higher than the 0.4% in 2019, only 7 people were recognized as refugees in the first screening by the Ministry of Justice.

A few years ago, the Ministry of Justice’s refugee interview manipulation incident was revealed, causing a great shock. A refugee applicant who entered Korea and applied for refugee status discovered during ongoing litigation that the persecution facts specifically stated during the interview were not recorded in the minutes, and instead, it was written that they "came to Korea to earn money." Fortunately, this case was uncovered and remedied through the efforts of civil society organizations and media reports, but it is difficult to fully confirm how many such damages exist and whether improvements have been made since then. In this situation, even refugees who have gone through the entire refugee recognition screening system cannot return to their home countries and have no choice but to reapply. In fact, many people have been recognized as refugees through the reapplication process despite no prior changes in their home country.

June 20 is World Refugee Day designated by the United Nations, and civil society organizations, including the Korea Refugee Rights Network, are planning various events this year to raise awareness about refugees and show solidarity with them. On the 18th, the 7th Refugee Film Festival will be held under the theme "Together Despite Everything," and on the 19th, a refugee cultural festival will take place at Seoul Cheonggye Plaza to discuss rights, possibilities, and hope with refugees.

As the number of refugees worldwide reaches the highest level since World War II, the international community is cooperating to protect refugees. Alongside the efforts of civil society organizations, it is hoped that the Korean government, as a party to the Refugee Convention and a country marking the 10th anniversary of the Refugee Act, will fulfill its responsibilities in the international community. Rather than focusing solely on swiftly filtering out abusive applicants who misuse the refugee system, it is necessary to establish an accurate, transparent, and prompt screening system so that refugees can be recognized as refugees and enjoy treatment based on the Refugee Convention.