Demanding a Statement of Apology for Renewal of a Residence Card Is a Violation of Human Rights
The National Human Rights Commission of Korea(NHRCK) presented a recommendation on January 5 2023 that the head of a regional immigration office give a warning notice to its employee for demanding a letter of apology from a non-citizen applying for a renewal of a residence card.
The complaint submitted to the NHRCK alleges that the respondent demanded a statement of apology from the complainant’s spouse who visited the immigration office where the respondent was working to renew his/her residence card for the offense of driving under the influence (DUI) found on the criminal record.
The respondent claimed that, after finding the DUI offense during criminal record checks for a renewal of the victim’s residence card, the respondent presented the statement form to verify facts and informed that the statement of apology would be used to mitigate any negative impact on the examination of the renewal application without coercing the victim to apologize for the offense or pledge to comply with the law.
Despite the conflicting statements from the complainant and the respondent about how the victim presented a statement of apology, the NHRCK’s human rights violation investigation committee concluded that the respondent demanded a statement of apology from the victim for reasons stated below.
The statement of apology says that the victim “deeply regrets his/her behavior and promises to comply with the relevant laws.” However, it appears unlikely that the victim, a permanent resident(F-5 visa holder) who has not committed a crime that can lead to deportation, voluntarily submitted such a statement.
Moreover, all of the statements that the respondent collected from the victim and other visitors who could be subject to deportation for the two months in the office included such words as regret, sorry and forgiveness. It is thus reasonable to conclude that the respondent has been pushing non-citizens visiting the immigration office to write a statement of apology.
The NHRCK’s investigation committee finds that the respondent’s act of compelling the victim to write and submit a statement of apology constitutes a violation of the victim’s right to freedom of action and freedom of conscience, which are protected by Articles 10 and 19 of the Constitution, and recommends the head of the immigration office to give a warning notice to the respondent.
