The South Korean government has announced that it will release more than 900 prisoners on parole on the 14th to clear the overcrowding of these facilities after an outbreak of more than 1,000 people in a detention center in Seoul.
In South Korea, an outbreak occurred in late November last year after it was revealed that an employee was infected with the new coronavirus in a detention center in Seoul, and according to the city of Seoul, the number of related infected persons is until the 13th. It means that the number of people has exceeded 1160.
Under these circumstances, the Ministry of Justice announced that it will release more than 900 prisoners on parole ahead of schedule on the 14th in order to eliminate the overcrowding of correctional facilities nationwide such as detention centers.
According to this, we will relax the screening criteria for parole and expand the scope of inmates and model prisoners who are at high risk of infection, such as those who are elderly or have underlying illnesses.
On the other hand, inmates who are in prison for sex crimes, child abuse, drunk driving, etc. are not included in the target.
Facilities such as detention centers have been criticized for inadequate government response, despite concerns about the spread of the infection due to the large number of people in the limited space.