the Supreme Court, we submitted our opinion to the Supreme Court on December 6 that it is
desirable to recognize criminal indemnity for security and custody measures specified in the
Social Safety Act (presently, the Act on Probation, Etc.).
The victim in this case was sentenced to five years in prison with labor for violating the
National Security Act, etc., in 1975 and was additionally sentenced to security and custody
measures pursuant to the Social Safety Act. The victim was found not guilty at a retrial in 2014
after spending over 12 years in prison and subsequently filed for criminal indemnity.
However, in 2016, the Seoul High Court recognized criminal indemnity for five years of
the grounds that the Act on Criminal Compensation and Restoration of Impaired Reputation had no
relevant provisions. This case has been pending at the Supreme Court for almost three years.
The security and custody measures specified in the Social Safety Act were used as double
punishment for numerous public safety offenders until it was abolished in 1989. As many
victims designated as public safety offenders were coerced through torture, harsh treatment,
and illegal confinement by investigation agencies, retrials and claims for criminal indemnity are
expected to continue.
As such, we submitted our opinion to the Supreme Court judging that its ruling will have a
significant impact on the improvement of human rights as well as on the future path of victims
of similar cases.
C. Submitting the Opinion to the Supreme Court on the Case of Nurses
Who Applied for Medical Care Benefits
On December 24, we decided to submit our opinion to the justice department in charge on the
lawsuit for the revocation of the measure to turn down the application for medical care benefits
pending at the Supreme Court.
Nurses who became pregnant while working at the respective medical center from 2009 to
2010 had miscarriages or gave birth to babies with congenital heart diseases. They were found
to have directly and indirectly dealt with harmful chemicals that adversely affect the health of
fetuses. Those nurses who gave birth to babies with congenital heart diseases applied for medical
National Human Rights Commission of Korea Annual Report 2018
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Part 2 | Commission's Major Activities
imprisonment with labor and disapproved criminal indemnity for security and custody measures on