Police Violate Human Rights by Filming Women During Prostitution Crackdown

"Photos Taken at Crackdown Sites Are Circumstantial Evidence... Can Be Replaced by Inclusion in Investigation Reports"

Representatives from Gongik Inkwon Law Foundation Gonggam, Seongnodongja Haebang Haengdong, Juhongbit Yeondae, and Chacha are holding a press conference in front of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 5th. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] Civic groups have raised their voices demanding an end to human rights violation practices related to the police photographing women's bodies during prostitution crackdowns and distributing the images to the media.

Kim Ji-hye, a lawyer at the Public Interest Human Rights Foundation 'Gonggam,' appeared on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' on the 6th and pointed out, "In actual prostitution sites, many women are often not wearing clothes," adding, "There is a problem of police secretly filming such scenes with miniature video cameras."

Earlier, on the 5th, Gonggam, Sex Workers' Liberation Action Red Light Solidarity Chacha, and the Korea Cyber Sexual Violence Response Center held a press conference in front of the National Human Rights Commission building in Jung-gu, Seoul, and filed a petition urging the police to stop photographing the bodies of women involved in prostitution under the pretext of crackdowns and distributing the images to the media.

These organizations had also filed a petition with the Human Rights Commission in July regarding an incident where the police, during a joint prostitution crackdown, photographed naked women without consent and shared the images in a KakaoTalk group chat with 15 police officers.

On the 5th, civic groups including the Gongik In-gwon Beopjaedan Gonggam, Seongnodongja Haebang Haengdong, Juhongbit Yeondae, and Chacha filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission, alleging that the police are violating the human rights of those filmed by sharing footage, allowing media filming, or distributing footage to the media.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Lawyer Kim explained, "Less than ten days after filing the petition with the Human Rights Commission in July, a police station in Seoul distributed videos of prostitution women's faces and bodies to reporters as press releases without mosaic blurring," adding, "This time, we have refiled the petition requesting the Human Rights Commission to recommend the Commissioner General of the National Police Agency to prohibit or improve human rights violation practices during prostitution crackdowns by investigating additional cases involving various types of body filming and distribution management issues."

He argued, "(The photos taken at the crackdown site) are only circumstantial evidence," stating, "Looking at the photos taken now, there are pictures of women sitting without clothes smoking cigarettes, showering, and such, but these are not direct evidence of prostitution acts."

Furthermore, Lawyer Kim said, "There is a claim that 'there was an urgent need to preserve evidence at the time,' but it is entirely possible to enter the site, confirm that the prostitution woman is naked, provide a blanket to cover her body, and then take photos," emphasizing, "Covering the body with a blanket does not mean any evidence of prostitution charges was destroyed, and it can be sufficiently replaced by police officers recording the situation at the crackdown site in investigation reports instead of photos."