A National Human Rights Commission inquiry has revealed that the Seoul Detention Center and the Seoul Regional Corrections Bureau distorted the truth about a sexual abuse case and tried to minimize what happened. The commission concluded that one female prisoner's attempted suicide was because of serious sexual abuse and inappropriate actions on the part of the detention center. Its formal recommendation is that the perpetrator be sent to the prosecution and that everyone related to what took place be penalized.
This whole situation must not be put to rest with the simple punishment of a few civil servants in the prison system. The system must not be allowed to evade responsibility like a lizard losing his tail. Those responsible must be held responsible and prosecuted following an investigation. The inquiry needs to cover other victims as well.
Looking at the commission's findings you feel enraged at the behavior of prison authorities, who organized to cover-up the incident. They spent all their energy trying tactics to put the matter to rest by appeasing the victim's family with bait such as parole. The corrections board, which went about an initial investigation, hid the truth. The Ministry of Justice was so obsessed with reducing the backlash that it accepted the detention center's explanation in full. The high walls of the facility and problematic prison administration pushed a powerless female prisoner to suicide.
It is embarrassing to see officials say they are going to put windows in the doors of questioning rooms and provide harassment awareness training for prison officers. That would obviously lead to a return to normal once the public outrage quiets down. Sexual abuse in correctional institutions needs to be excluded from the rule regarding the personal filing of complaints, and there needs to be other preventive measures such as a greater number of female officers involved in inspection.
Most important will be facilities and administration that take women's particularities into consideration. Most facilities give almost no consideration to their needs, particularly those relating to bathing and menstruation. They are more often than not made to do domestic chores, and subsequently have less opportunity to learn job skills. There will be no way to prevent similar incidents in the future unless something is done about the male-centered facilities and administration practices.
The Hankyoreh, 8 March 2006.
[Translations by Seoul Selection]
[Editorial] Dealing With Prison Sex Abuse Cover-UP |
