Immigration Crackdown

[Anchor Lead]

South Korea's immigration service triggered controversy assaulting a foreign student studying in Korea in the midst of a crackdown on illegal migrants. The student was detained for five days even after his residency status had been confirmed.

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This 24-year-old man from Uzbekistan was taking a break from work at a construction site when two males all of a sudden approached him and began to beat him. Moments later, three other men disembark from a van and join in. The five are officials from the Changwon Immigration Office who visited the construction site to crack down on illegal migrants.

[Soundbite] (Witness (Voice Modified)) : "When we saw him bleeding, we asked the officials how they could beat someone like this, but they told us to back off."

However, the victim turned out to be a foreign student who enrolled in a graduate school in Gyeonggi-do Province back in March. It was his first day at work at a construction site in Haman, Gyeongsangnam-do Province, where he was to work part-time during the summer break. Sources say the officials did not abide by the Miranda rule or human rights protection rules.

[Soundbite] Kim Kyung-soo(Changwon Immigration Office) : "He refused to show us his ID card and began to flee with a dangerous object in his hands. We had no other choice but to use physical force."

The immigration office kept the student in detention for five days even after confirming his legal residency status, because the officials wanted to find out if he indeed was enrolled in a university. The victim was not provided any medical help at the detention center and currently has the symptoms of traumatic brain injury. The Gyeongnam Migrant Center is urging the Ministry of Justice to investigate the matter and offer an apology and compensation to the victim.