[Exclusive] Four to Five Sharing Double Rooms... Female Juvenile Detention Rate Hits Record High, Dedicated Facility to Open in Gyeonggi Province

Expansion Plan for Gwangju Juvenile Detention Center Probationer Facilities
Minister Jeong Seongho: "Overcrowding Is Severe"

With the female juvenile detention rate reaching an all-time high this year, the Ministry of Justice has begun expanding facilities. A new dedicated facility for female juveniles will be established in Gyeonggi Province, and the Gwangju Juvenile Detention Center will be expanded.

According to an Asia Economy investigation on October 14, the Ministry of Justice is currently constructing a "Metropolitan Area Dedicated Facility for Female Juvenile Entrustment" in Gyeonggi Province, aiming to begin operations in the first half of next year. The design for the expansion of the Gwangju Juvenile Detention Center's entrusted juvenile housing has been completed, with construction set to begin next year. In addition, the ministry is discussing budgets with relevant agencies to expand female juvenile detention facilities in the central region.

The Ministry of Justice's push for facility expansion is due to overall overcrowding caused by a surge in the female youth detention rate. According to ministry data, as of August this year, the average occupancy rate at juvenile detention facilities nationwide was 110.2%, marking two consecutive years of "overcapacity" since last year.

In particular, the occupancy rate at female juvenile detention centers in Anyang and Cheongju was around 81% in 2022 but soared to 173% as of August this year, the highest ever recorded. In a facility designed for 160 people, 276 are currently housed together. The occupancy rate for female detainees at the Seoul Juvenile Classification and Assessment Center, which temporarily houses pretrial juvenile offenders in the metropolitan area, has reached 231%. As a result, four to five people must share a room intended for two, sleeping in extremely cramped conditions.

Minister of Justice Jeong Seongho also visited the Anyang Juvenile Detention Center last month, emphasizing, "Overcrowding at juvenile detention centers is severe," and urging, "Please work to expand facilities so that 'the protection of human rights for the public' can be realized."

A Ministry of Justice official stated, "Despite a decrease in the juvenile population, both juvenile crime and the number of juveniles housed in detention centers continue to increase," adding, "To improve human rights treatment for protected juveniles and enhance the effectiveness of correctional education, it is essential to fundamentally resolve overcrowding through facility expansion."

Joo Jinwoo, a member of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee from the People Power Party, also commented, "While expanding facilities is important in the short term, fundamental measures aligned with the goals of correction and rehabilitation, such as preventing recidivism, are needed."