The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) is launching an ex officio investigation, prompted by the Saekdongwon case, to examine whether disabled victims were properly able to participate in investigations of human rights violations at residential facilities for people with disabilities.
The commission said Wednesday it will conduct an ex officio investigation into the "protection of rights in the investigation process of human rights violations at disability residential facilities, including Saekdongwon," targeting the Korean National Police Agency, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, and the police units that investigated the human rights violation cases at the facilities. The commission plans to finalize the scope of its investigation by analyzing cases referred for investigation by disability rights advocacy organizations.
The Saekdongwon case, which prompted the investigation, involves allegations that the head of a residential facility for people with severe disabilities in Incheon committed sexual assault and physical violence against female disabled residents over an extended period. The investigation began in February last year after a female disabled resident reported the abuse. When subsequent in-depth investigation confirmed numerous accounts of abuse, police formed a special investigation unit and conducted a full-scale investigation of 87 people with disabilities and 152 workers who had been at Saekdongwon. The facility head was ultimately sent to trial in March on charges of violating the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes and the Act on Welfare of Persons with Disabilities.
The commission judged that disability residential facilities have a structure in which it is difficult to confirm abuse through ordinary testimony alone, given the high dependence between residents and workers and the frequent restriction of outside contact. In particular, the commission noted that "for disabled victims who have difficulty communicating, it is hard to sufficiently confirm the facts of abuse through investigations centered solely on ordinary verbal testimony," adding that "procedures to confirm abuse that take disability characteristics into account, such as behavioral observation, life records, and testimony from those around the victim, are important."
Accordingly, the commission plans to focus on examining whether statement assistance and support from persons in a relationship of trust were provided appropriately, and whether the structural characteristics of the facilities, such as their closed nature and power relationships, were sufficiently reflected in the investigation process. Based on the findings, the commission plans to develop measures to improve investigation procedures so that disabled victims can be substantively guaranteed their rights in criminal justice proceedings.
