[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] Correctional facility operations are expected to normalize as early as next week. There have been no additional confirmed cases for a week within Seoul Dongbu Detention Center, where a group infection of COVID-19 among inmates occurred. The Ministry of Justice plans to further reduce overcrowding in correctional facilities by carrying out parole releases within 2 to 3 days to prevent additional group infection incidents.
According to the legal and quarantine authorities on the 27th, no additional confirmed cases have been reported in correctional facilities nationwide since the 20th. The last confirmed case in correctional facilities was an inmate transferred from Dongbu Detention Center to Yeongwol Prison, who was finally confirmed positive on the 19th.
Earlier, the Ministry of Justice announced that if no additional confirmed cases occur two weeks after the last confirmed case at Dongbu Detention Center, the operation of Dongbu Detention Center would be normalized. The staff member confirmed positive on the 23rd at Dongbu Detention Center had been in self-quarantine since the 10th of this month and was not counted as a confirmed case after the 20th. Although the final judgment of the quarantine authorities is needed, under the current criteria, normal operations could resume as early as the latter part of next week. Once operations normalize, the kitchen will operate, and inmates' exercise, bathing, and lawyer visits will resume. Judicial schedules such as trials will also normalize in consultation with the courts.
The results of mass testing are also positive. Until the 10th round, confirmed cases appeared each time, but since the 11th test conducted on the 21st, no confirmed cases have been found. The results of the 13th test conducted that day also came back all negative.
However, the Ministry of Justice has decided to continue reducing the density within correctional facilities to prepare for any possible additional group infection incidents. To this end, parole releases will be carried out within 2 to 3 days. This is a measure to break the chain of COVID-19 infections within Dongbu Detention Center and prevent transmission to other correctional facilities.
Following the first measure on the 13th, when over 900 people were paroled, this second measure will also include more people than the regular parole level. They are currently selecting vulnerable patients, those with underlying diseases, and elderly inmates, while excluding life-term and long-term prisoners, sex offenders, drunk driving offenders (causing death, fleeing, or serious injury), and those who committed socially problematic crimes such as child abuse.
A Ministry of Justice official stated, "At the current level of quarantine, partial work to normalize correctional facility operations can begin from next week," adding, "Regardless of whether confirmed cases occur, measures to prevent additional infections and reduce density will continue to be implemented."
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