A proposed prison for foreigners is drawing fire for possibly giving non-Korean inmates “favorable treatment”:
A prison for foreigners will open in Cheonan, North Chungcheong Province, as early as next month, the Ministry of Justice said Monday.
But experts have raised concerns it could attract complaints from Korean prisoners over “favorable” treatment given to non-Korean inmates.
The ministry said the exclusive prison is designed to efficiently manage the growing number of foreign convicts and prevent any trouble between Korean and non-Korean inmates caused by differences in culture, language and lifestyle.
A correction center currently used for juvenile delinquents will be transformed into the prison, the ministry added.
A total of 23 prison officers fluent in English, Chinese and Russian will be assigned to the facility.
As of January, 1,423 foreigners were behind bars here, compared with 698 in 2005.
Sit down for this:
According to a recent survey, trouble in a multi-racial cells takes place more frequently than in racially homogeneous cells, suggesting the necessity of a foreigner-only prison.
Apparently, foreign criminals don’t seem to play nice with one another:
Human rights activist Hwang Myeong-ho, who conducted the survey on prisoners at Daejeon Correctional Center, said, “Each racial group showed antagonism to others groups. In particular, disputes between hot-tempered Russian and Chinese prisoners, forming the largest racial group, were frequent.”
Oh, the humanity.
I must ask, though, that if foreign and Korean prisoners are kept separate, whence will come the Cullen Thomas‘s of the future?
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
Some prisons in California are segregated. Perhaps racial violence is enough of a problem that a foreigner prison is required.
But if the main problem is violence between Russians and Chinese, how does this help?
Isn’t this really about getting Koreans safely out of the way of the barbarian devils?
Korean jail, and from what I heard while in a Korean prison, are delightful places compared to the U.S. I was housed with a Korean with American citizenship and two Chinese and we all got along splendidly for the four months I was there. The KA had been there the longest and was the oldest so he sort of set rules on keeping the place clean and tidy, which is necessary when you have four guys in 4m^2, but he wasn’t a dick about it, nor was he bossy. We mixed with Korean prisoners on the yard and when going to visitation/the doctor, and they too were generally very friendly and sociable. I would much rather have stayed in Korean prison for 3.5 years than in US prison for 2.5 years, even the food alone would make that a good deal.
How much will Kangnam ajummas pay to get their kids into this place?
“Linkd”: you are a bad man. Stop making me spill coffee on my keyboard.
Too much Linkd
)…..I wonder if a criminal record check will be required to teach there?
It would be so much cheaper if the authorities could put them in shallow graves. The prisoners I mean, not Linkdt’s Kangnam children.
“How much will Kangnam ajummas pay to get their kids into this place?”
Best Comment of the Month (and it’s been a long month).
I’ll second the Best Comment bid. I thought it was hilarious when Brendon Carr was talking about English teachers shitting on his pancakes, but this is much better.
As long as I’m typing, Cullen Thomas is an embarrassing idiot.
“Some prisons in California are segregated. Perhaps racial violence is enough of a problem that a foreigner prison is required.”
I think it’s about gang control. Korean gang members are relatively easy to control in jail, or so I’ve heard. I don’t think the government would want to see Russian and Chinese gangs slowly beginning to take over –not that I imagine there is currently a danger that they will.
As long as I’m typing, Cullen Thomas is an embarrassing idiot.
I just read his book (mainly because there was nothing else I could find at the time), and was pleasantly surprised. The guy can actually write very well, and mostly it was interesting stuff.
Yes… I give his book a nod too.
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