The National Human Rights Commission of Korea calls for improved procedures concerning the crackdown on and detention of undocumented immigrants.
On December 6, 2007, the Standing Commissioner’s Committee of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) met to review an amendment bill to the Immigration Control Act, which had been passed in the National Assembly and announced by the Ministry of Justice on November 8, 2007. The Committee and many human rights activists believe that the bill must be altered, to bring Korea’s Immigration Control Act into line with international human rights norms.
Among other things, the Committee concluded:
that “indeterminateness” among the causes of forced eviction should be deleted;
that measures to protect the human rights of illegal immigrants in the process of cracking down and sheltering illegal migrants should be laid down and that these measures should have equally binding legal force as criminal and judicial proceedings;
that the system of compulsory notification by civil servants to illegally residing foreigners should be improved;
that the exception provisions regarding the prohibition of the deportation of refugees should be deleted; and
that the causes for the rejection of applications for asylum should be revised.
The Committee will express this opinion officially to the Minister of Justice.
On February 11, 2007, a fire occurred at the Yeosu Immigrant Detention Center, taking the lives of 11 immigrants. The incident revealed problems in the crackdown on and detention of illegal migrants, as well as the human rights situation in detention centers.
The Standing Commissioner’s Committee of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea has met to give a proper reaction to events like the Yeosu fire. The Commission has already expressed its opinion that the Immigration Control Act be radically revised on several occasions and has voiced a need to alter the obligatory notification system for civil servants and to establish a refugee status system that satisfies international standards.
In 2005, the Ministry of Justice formed a committee to research means to revise and implement laws for refugees and a task force to revise the Immigration Control Act. The committee and task force have looked into model examples of advanced countries and carried out research on how to upgrade immigration control administration and rectify the operational shortcomings of the current system.
In February of 2006, the Ministry announced a plan to make changes to immigration control administration and produced a draft amendment bill to the Act in July 2006. The draft bill was brought to hearings and garnered a positive response overall, with many revisions, deletions and additional clauses suggested by the Commission and other organizations. The amendment was then brought to the National Assembly for passage, which was announced on November 8, 2007.
The National Human Rights Commission of Korea was established in 2001, offering investigation and remedy services for Korean citizens and foreigners residing in Korea against human rights violations and discrimination. The Commission provides policy recommendations and remedial action against human rights infringements, collaborates with international human rights organizations and implements educational programs to improve the human rights culture.
