Court: "Foreigners Detained and Tortured for Democratization Protests Are Refugees"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The court ruled that foreigners who participated in pro-democracy protests and were illegally detained and tortured in their home countries must be granted refugee status.

According to the legal community on the 11th, Judge Choi Giwon of the Seoul Administrative Court, Administrative Division 10, recently ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in the first trial of the lawsuit filed by foreigner A, his wife, and two children against the head of the Seoul Immigration Office under the Ministry of Justice, seeking to cancel the decision denying their refugee status.

Previously, from 2011 to 2014, A participated multiple times in protests in his home country opposing a coup, advocating for democratization, and demanding the president’s resignation. In 2017, his home country arrested, detained, and tortured him, demanding that he confess to being a member of an anti-government group. A was also released on bail under the condition that he report his personal information weekly to security agencies.

However, after hearing that a friend who was released under the same conditions was re-arrested, A fled abroad in February 2018. About three months later, he entered Korea with a tourist/transit (B-2) visa and applied for refugee status at the Seoul Immigration Office.

The Seoul Immigration Office did not recognize A’s refugee status, citing insufficient grounds to believe that he would be persecuted if he returned to his home country.

The first trial court ruled in favor of A, stating, "The plaintiff’s testimony is overall reasonable and credible," and recognized its reliability. The court also judged that documents submitted by A to prove his arrest and detention, such as the detention order and police investigation records, were properly prepared by the original authors.

Furthermore, the court added, "The home government’s repression of anti-government protest participants is ongoing," and "The fear of being re-arrested or forcibly disappeared upon return is a well-founded fear."

Since the head of the Seoul Immigration Office did not appeal, this ruling has been finalized as is.

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