Daughter of man who forcibly taken to Samchung re-education camp commits suicide

A memorial service organized by Samcheong victim A for his daughter who passed away. Provided by Mr. A.

Mr. A, 66, cannot clearly remember the year his oldest daughter died. “Was it five years ago? Or was it six years ago?” He loses track of time. Every year, he visits the beach off Gijang, Busan, where he scattered her ashes.

She was born in 1984. His daughter, who dreamed of becoming a tour guide as a child, got married in 2017. The engagement was broken off. Her father in-law opposed the marriage, saying, “I can‘t let my son marry to a family from the Samchung re-education camp.”

In 1980, when Mr. A was 22 years old, he was forcibly detained by the police and taken to the Samchung re-education camp without knowing why. 37 years later, he became a “guilty man” to his daughter. Her daughter was broken after her engagement was called off. She drank every day for two to three years and quit her job. What she said, "My father ruined my life as he went to a bad place," is still stuck in his mind to this day.

Mr. A also fought with his wife over this. He left Busan, where he lived with his family, and settled alone in Jeju. In 2019, he received an obituary that his daughter had committed suicide because she was despondent about her situation.

“If I hadn’t been taken away to the camp at that time, I would have seen my daughter giving birth to a child and living well…,” his voice trailed off while speaking to a reporter on May 28.

The Samchung re-education camp is a human rights abuses case in which the new military regime of Chun Doo-hwan forced 39,742 people without warrants into military camps across the country for seven months in 1980, claiming to “round up delinquents en masse,” forcing them to undergo collective and purification education. The victims suffered violence by the state, including forced labor and harsh treatment. Even after they were released, they were socially stigmatized as “delinquents” or “bums.” The stigma is still ongoing.

“When I think of my daughter, I remember everything that happened to me at the Samchung re-education camp,” said Mr. A. "I still vividly remember how much I was starved and where I was beaten."

Mr. A from an orphanage in Busan was taken to the Busan Central Police Station in 1980 because of his tattoos. “Because I was an orphan, I didn‘t want to look weak to others, so I tattooed both forearms,” he said. “I was taken away to the police station for having a picture on my body. They also took away people who bought items on credit at supermarkets.”

According to the investigation report, he was sentenced to two years and four months of purification education, work service, and protective custody in military units and protective custody centers. It was a time marred by violence. "(Soldiers) kicked, clubbed, and made me flabbergasted if I didn't meet the allocation workload," he recalled.

In December 1982, Mr. A was unexpectedly “released” from prison. “Even when I tried to get a job at a small factory, I was rejected and could only do menial labor,” he said.

Throughout his 20s and 30s, the social stigma of being labeled a “delinquent” followed him. His happiest years were when he met his wife, started a family, and raised a daughter and son. “I worked hard to raise my children while working at construction sites,” he said.

The shadow that he managed to shake off was darkened again by his daughter's death. At first, he hesitated to file a damage case with the second Truth and Reconciliation Commission because of his guilt. "Since my daughter passed away because of me, honestly, I didn't even think about national compensation," he said.

However, if he received an apology and compensation from the country, he would feel proud that he was "not taken away for doing bad things" and he could ease the burden on his remaining son. In July last year, Mr. A received a decision from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate the truth. Since this was only a recommendation, an individual lawsuit against the state had to be carried out on his own.

On April 26, the Jeju District Court issued a first trial ruling that the state should pay Mr. A with some 260 million won in compensation. "It's over now," he thought for a moment. However, the state appealed against the first trial ruling on May 14.

A's lawyer said, “We haven't received the reason for appeal yet, but the reason may be the calculation of the amount of compensation or the issue of extinct prescription," adding, “We heard that it usually doesn't end at the first trial."

Mr. A sighed at the fact that he had to continue the court battle. "I received a text message from my lawyer saying, 'I heard that the Republic of Korea is appealing,'" he said. "I struggled at a young age and tried to solve a little bit of the damage that my family suffered, but I guess I still have a long way to go."

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.