Correctional authorities’ decision not to allow an inmate to leave prison to attend his mother’s funeral in 2021 was due to COVID-19.
According to him, the reason was due to reasons of COVID-19 quarantine was a violation of human rights, the state human rights watchdog said Wednesday.
The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) has put forward such an opinion after the inmate lodged a petition with it last June.
He said that he could not attend his mother’s funeral in December 2021 due to the prison’s refusal to permit a leave because of the pandemic.
The current law stipulates that inmates can be granted a special leave of absence within five days in case of the death of a member of their or their spouse’s immediate family.
The prison authorities explained that the inmate’s application for special leave was denied in consideration of the growth in the number of COVID-19 infections among inmates.
The authorities added there was the need to strengthen quarantine measures for the correctional facilities as at the time of his request.
But the NHRCK pointed out that the spread of COVID-19 could have been prevented with regular quarantine and testing of the inmate after his return from the leave. (Yonhap/NAN)