Hanbyun Files Compensation Lawsuit Today Against State, Choo Mi-ae, and Dongbu Detention Center Chief... Representing 2 Confirmed Released Inmates

Seongpa-gu Dongbu Detention Center, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] A conservative-leaning lawyers' group is filing a lawsuit on behalf of two released inmates who contracted COVID-19 while incarcerated at Dongbu Detention Center, suing the state, Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae, and Dongbu Detention Center Director Park Ho-seo.

The Lawyers' Group for Human Rights and Unification of the Korean Peninsula (Hanbyeon) announced on the 22nd that it will file a lawsuit at the Seoul Eastern District Court seeking 10 million won each in damages from the state on behalf of two released inmates who were infected with COVID-19 while detained at Dongbu Detention Center and are currently receiving treatment.

The two plaintiffs were detained at Dongbu Detention Center for about two months after receiving a substitute labor punishment for failing to pay fines in October and December of last year, and were released at the end of last year and early this year, respectively.

However, both contracted COVID-19 at Dongbu Detention Center and are currently testing positive and undergoing isolation treatment at hospitals and other facilities.

In particular, Hanbyeon judged that Minister Choo and Director Park bear gross negligence responsibility for the mass infection incident at Dongbu Detention Center, and added them as defendants in their personal capacity, not just as representatives of the state, in the lawsuit against the state.

Hanbyeon stated, "We will file a claim for damages jointly against the state, which neglected efforts to protect the people, and Minister Choo and the Dongbu Detention Center Director, who ignored their overall responsibility for the life and safety of inmates."

They further argued, "Minister Choo, as the head of the Correctional Headquarters, a subordinate organization of the Ministry of Justice responsible for corrections, is the entity responsible for all affairs and quarantine measures at Dongbu Detention Center, yet showed gross negligence by failing to take any quarantine measures. The Dongbu Detention Center Director, as the direct administrative officer, also showed gross negligence by neglecting the life, safety, and health of the inmates."

Meanwhile, regarding the mass infection incident originating from Dongbu Detention Center, on the 6th, four inmates filed a lawsuit seeking 10 million won each in damages, and on the 20th, two inmates sought 20 million won each, and seven family members filed claims ranging from 1 to 2 million won each at the Seoul Central District Court.

As Hanbyeon and the lawyers who filed previous lawsuits are recruiting additional plaintiffs, lawsuits holding the state accountable for the Dongbu Detention Center mass infection incident are expected to continue.