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Urgent Relief to Suspend Execution of the Mandatory Deportation Order and Lift Protective Measures [2003] KRNHRC 24 (1 January 2003)

A complaint about the incident below was filed with the Commission.
In investigating a taxi robbery by two unknown foreigners at the crosswalk
in dong, (20,000 was robbed from the taxi driver, Mr. Im), the
respondent booked the two victims on charges of quasi robbery on the ground
of statements made by the victims who were nearly in drunk stupors at the time
of their statements to the police, and the statement by the taxi driver. When
finding that the victims had not been illegally staying in Korea when handing
them over to the Immigration Office according to the order from the
prosecutor to `Investigate the victims without physical restraint, and take
measures for forced deportation as illegal sojourners,' the respondent erased the
phrase `illegal sojourners' on the prosecutor's order and instead replaced it with
`suspects of quasi robbery' and delivered the order to the head of the
Immigration Office, thereby putting the victims on the wait list for forced
deportation.

After investigation, the Commission found that the handling of the incident
the prosecutor ordering measures for compulsory deportation as `illegal­
sojourners,' a police officer altering `illegal sojourners' on the prosecutor's order
to `offenders against the law' and forwarding the document to the Immigration
Office, the reasoning of the Immigration Office decision to deport the victims
was in violation of due process. The foreign suspects presented alibis, denying­
the charges against them. The question of whether they are `offenders against
the law' is not clearly determined; forced deportation is not proper; and the
malfeasance that led to the decision to deport the foreigners should be
corrected. Until the suspects are proven guilty of the crime beyond reasonable
doubt, the mandatory deportation order should be suspended and the measures
for protection should be lifted.

The Commission recommended the respondent organ take immediate action
to suspend the mandatory deportation order and to lift the protective measures.