The prosecution has decided not to appeal the case of the late Kang Eulsung, a death row inmate in the Rebuilding Committee of the Unified Revolutionary Party case, who was acquitted in a retrial.
On January 19, the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office stated, "On October 29 last year, we requested an acquittal from the court and offered our apologies and condolences to Mr. Kang and his family. Since the court has rendered a not-guilty verdict, we will forgo filing an appeal."
The Rebuilding Committee of the Unified Revolutionary Party case was a public security incident in November 1974, when the Security Command announced that members of the Democratic Defense Comrades Association had allegedly attempted to rebuild the Unified Revolutionary Party under orders from North Korea. Mr. Kang, who was a civilian employee of the military at the time, was implicated in the case, sentenced to death, and executed in 1976. His family filed for a retrial in November 2022, and the retrial was granted in February last year.
On this day, the 11th Criminal Division of the Seoul Eastern District Court (Presiding Judge Kang Minho) acquitted Mr. Kang, who had been sentenced to death for violating the National Security Act and other charges, in the retrial sentencing hearing. The court ruled, "The investigation and courtroom testimony regarding Mr. Kang were conducted while he was illegally detained by the Security Command or under its influence, and therefore have no evidentiary value."
A prosecution official stated, "We once again offer our deepest apologies and condolences to Mr. Kang and his family, who patiently waited for a long time as we gathered and verified records scattered over about 50 years. As an institution dedicated to the protection of human rights, we will strive to fulfill our duties even more faithfully to ensure that such incidents never occur again."
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