"Hand Over CCTV," Government Refuses Court Order… "Victims Treated Like Cargo"

[Anchor]

A foreign national who stayed at a foreigner detention center has filed a lawsuit against the South Korean government, claiming to have been assaulted by a social worker. However, despite a court order, the government is refusing to submit key evidence, which is the CCTV footage from that time.

Reporter Je Hui-won has the story.

[Reporter]

In November the year before last, a 32-year-old Algerian national, A, who was staying at the Hwaseong Foreigner Detention Center, filed a state compensation lawsuit seeking 3 million won against the Republic of Korea late last year, claiming he was assaulted by a social worker.

He stated that the social worker headbutted him in the forehead and grabbed him by the back of the neck because he did not comply with instructions to go into the PC room.

In June of this year, the prosecution summarily indicted the social worker on assault charges, seeking a fine of 500,000 won.

Viewing the CCTV video analysis data from that time as core evidence for the compensation lawsuit, A requested the court to submit the materials. The court accepted this and ordered the South Korean government to submit them in July.

[A / Hwaseong Foreigner Detention Center Assault Victim: It is not that I want people to believe my words simply because I am a victim. I want the CCTV to speak for itself.]

However, the government appealed, objecting that there is no obligation to submit under the Civil Procedure Act and that the footage is not necessary evidence for determining state compensation liability.

Kim Jin-joo, the victim of the Busan roundhouse kick case who had filed a state compensation lawsuit arguing that shoddy investigative agency investigations worked in favor of the perpetrator, experienced a similar situation.

Kim's side requested the perpetrator's DNA appraisal data, stating it was necessary for the state compensation lawsuit, but most of the documents sent by the prosecution were blackened out, making it impossible to check the core contents.

Citing the protection of privacy and investigative security, it is difficult for the victim to accept.

[Kim Jin-joo / Victim of Busan Roundhouse Kick Case: We are not even leads; we are extras. Victims cannot get information anywhere. (The state) is treating us like cargo.]

[Oh Ji-won / Lawyer: There are considerable difficulties because even the evidence that victims must secure to receive remedy of rights is determined solely at the discretion of (the court and prosecution) whether to give it or not...]

Pointings are emerging that when a crime damage is proven and a lawsuit against the state is processed, institutional improvements are necessary in a direction that substantially guarantees victims' rights.

(Video reporting: Lee Moo-jin, Video editing: Lee So-young, Design: Lee Jong-jung)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.