Subscribe
E-Paper
 |
| Human rights activists demonstrate the inhuman treatment that detainees of foreign nationality have suffered at Korea's immigration detention centers during a press conference with the Moroccan former detainee who endured them in front of the presidential office in Seoul's Yongsan District, Monday. Korea Times photo by Lee Hae-rin |
Activists, former detainee calls for better treatment in front of presidential office
By Lee Hae-rin
For the Moroccan asylum seeker who was detained in the Hwaseong Immigration Detention Center for months beginning in March of last year and suffered a variety of types of inhuman treatment there, the wounds are still fresh.
"I remember everything. 'Hwaseong-tanamo' is for life. I will never forget what happened," said the Moroccan national, who identified himself only by the initial of "M" for privacy reasons, on Monday.
The detainee used the word, "Hwaseong-tanamo," to refer to the detention center, inspired by the infamous detention center, Guantanamo Bay, which is operated by the U.S. military in Cuba and is embroiled in systemic human rights violations such as torture, arbitrary detention and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
The former detainee and a group of human rights lawyers and activists gathered in front of the presidential office in Seoul's Yongsan District, Monday, and held a press conference to condemn the Justice Ministry's revised legislation on detaining undocumented immigrants in custody from last month.
The event was held to mark World Refugee Day on June 20, which the United Nations designated in 2001 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention and to recognize the dignity and human rights of people who fled their home countries due to conflict, natural disaster or persecution based on their religion, race, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinions.
The video footage of the Moroccan man hogtied and lying face down in solitary confinement, with his head in protective headgear bound with box tape and cable ties drew fierce criticism last year.
The ministry acknowledged the human rights violations by the immigration authorities and announced the revised human rights measures last month, which are to take effect from July.
According to the protestors, the ministry's improved measures are not only insufficient to protect detainees' human rights but will only allow immigration authorities to commit more inhuman treatment under the pretext of "controlling detainees."
Kang Seong-joon, an activist of the archdiocese's Catholic Human Rights Committee, said that the "protective gear" that the ministry plans to authorize at immigration detention centers is in actuality "torture gear," according to several detainees.
Recalling his traumatic experience of being detained at Hwaseong Immigration Detention Center, the former detainee, in his 30s, said that he is still suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and physical problems with his hands and teeth from the violence.
He said that he has also been bombarded with hate speech since the video footage was revealed during the legal proceedings. Some of the racial and religious slurs he has received include, "This Moroccan Muslim talks about human rights, should we protect the human rights of such a vicious criminal?" and "Can we just shoot and kill him?"
 |
| The Moroccan former detainee of the Hwaseong Immigration Detention Center, whose face has been blurred, and human rights activists and lawyers hold a press conference to condemn the Justice Ministry's revised legislation for immigrant detentions, Monday. Korea Times photo by Lee Hae-rin |
The former detainee demanded that the ministry compensate for his mental distress and physical harm and provide rehabilitation services to "overcome the physical, psychological and social consequences of the torture," as entitled under the International Convention of Refugees.
He also demanded that the ministry make public the findings of its investigations into his case and punish the officials responsible for violating his human rights. The man claimed he was "tortured like a slave inside a 'dokbang' (solitary confinement cell in Korean) in shackles" by more than 10 officials while detained at the immigration detention center on April 6, 2021.
The human rights lawyers and activists say that the ministry's new measures have a serious procedural flaw.
According to lawyer Lee Han-jae from the Duroo Association for Public Interest Law, who has been representing the former detainee since last year, the ministry announced the revised legislation without consulting with the National Assembly and related government officials, including the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) and the ministry's own Human Rights Bureau.
Lee said that if the ministry truly finds the use of protective gear in immigrant detention centers necessary, the ministry should openly discuss and consult with experts on the necessity and medical appropriateness of the revised measures before taking any legislative decision.
Meanwhile, Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon said on June 10 that the ministry said the ministry's treatment of foreign detainees should be considered a "barometer of the country's human rights standards."
After visiting the Cheongju Immigration Detention Center on June 10, Han said that the ministry officials should "know that foreign detainees are not prisoners but rather people who are temporarily under the country's protection for their situation and circumstances," and urged humane treatment of the foreign nationals.
The press conference participants said that they welcome Han's approach and called for the cancellation of the revised legislation so that he can keep his word.
