Human Rights Commission: "Legal Translations Must Be Provided for Foreigners in Protection Facilities"

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) has stated that translated versions of laws and regulations should be provided to help foreigners in protection facilities better understand them.

On the 22nd, the NHRCK announced that it expressed the opinion to the Minister of Justice that related laws and regulations provided to foreigners in protection facilities should be made available in multiple languages.

According to the NHRCK, Mr. A, a Moroccan national detained at a foreigner protection center, requested an English translation of the Foreigners Protection Rules but was only given the Korean version. Mr. A filed a complaint with the NHRCK in August last year, claiming that his right to know was violated. The protection center explained that since there was no English translation available on the National Law Information Center website, they provided the Korean version, but instead offered an English translation of the Immigration Control Act, which forms the basis of the Foreigners Protection Rules.

The NHRCK dismissed Mr. A's complaint. This was because the protection center had prepared and kept within the facility the procedures related to temporary release or cancellation of protection, the rules of living within the protection facility, and methods for foreigners to seek remedies for their rights, all written in Korean, English, and Chinese.

However, the NHRCK recommended that the Ministry of Justice provide translated versions in English and other foreign languages to protect and promote the human rights of foreigners in protection.