Woo Yong Gak
Encyclopedia
Woo Yong Gak is a former North Korea
n commando
who was released from incarceration in South Korea
on 25 February 1999.
He served 40 years, 7 months and 13 days in prison
as one of South Korea's unconverted long-term prisoners
. It has also been said that he "spent 41 years in solitary confinement
". He returned to North Korea in September 2000.
for North Korea, Woo was sentenced to life imprisonment
. South Korea claimed that he had been leading a group of spies. Throughout his imprisonment he refused to sign an oath
of obedience to South Korea's National Security Law
, which bans the display or expression of any pro-North Korean sentiment.
records his claim of torture
in an underground facility after his arrest
and a forced confession
.
specifies solitary confinement for spies, even if they pose no physical threat.
Woo was held in solitary confinement in a 12-by-12 foot cell since his capture aboard a North Korean boat. The terms of his imprisonment permitted 30 minutes of daily exercise with other prisoners. In 1998, he was said to be "missing all his teeth because of years of torture, poor food, and inadequate medical treatment". In 1999, prior to his release, he was reported to be suffering from a degree of muscular paralysis
resulting from a stroke
to mark President Kim Dae-jung
's first year in office. As a 70 year old man, he walked free from the gates of Daejeon
prison. It was proposed that he be allowed to return to North Korea, where he had a wife and son, in exchange for South Korean prisoners of war. He returned to North Korea, though not in exchange for any imprisoned South Koreans, in early September 2000.
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
n commando
Commando
In English, the term commando means a specific kind of individual soldier or military unit. In contemporary usage, commando usually means elite light infantry and/or special operations forces units, specializing in amphibious landings, parachuting, rappelling and similar techniques, to conduct and...
who was released from incarceration in South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
on 25 February 1999.
He served 40 years, 7 months and 13 days in prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
as one of South Korea's unconverted long-term prisoners
Unconverted long-term prisoners
Unconverted long-term prisoners is the North Korean term for communist spies and guerillas imprisoned in South Korea who never renounced communism.-History:...
. It has also been said that he "spent 41 years in solitary confinement
Solitary confinement
Solitary confinement is a special form of imprisonment in which a prisoner is isolated from any human contact, though often with the exception of members of prison staff. It is sometimes employed as a form of punishment beyond incarceration for a prisoner, and has been cited as an additional...
". He returned to North Korea in September 2000.
Capture
Woo was captured during a North Korean commando raid in South Korea's east coast waters in 1958 while he participated as one of the raiders.Purpose
After his conviction of espionageEspionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
for North Korea, Woo was sentenced to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
. South Korea claimed that he had been leading a group of spies. Throughout his imprisonment he refused to sign an oath
Oath
An oath is either a statement of fact or a promise calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred, usually God, as a witness to the binding nature of the promise or the truth of the statement of fact. To swear is to take an oath, to make a solemn vow...
of obedience to South Korea's National Security Law
National Security Act (South Korea)
The National Security Law is a South Korean law which has the avowed purpose "to restrict anti-state acts that endanger national security and to protect [the] nation's safety and its people's life and freedom."...
, which bans the display or expression of any pro-North Korean sentiment.
Torture allegation
A report by Amnesty InternationalAmnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
records his claim of torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
in an underground facility after his arrest
Arrest
An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the purported investigation and prevention of crime and presenting into the criminal justice system or harm to oneself or others...
and a forced confession
Confession (legal)
In the law of criminal evidence, a confession is a statement by a suspect in crime which is adverse to that person. Some authorities, such as Black's Law Dictionary, define a confession in more narrow terms, e.g...
.
Solitary confinement
South Korean lawSouth Korean law
The legal system of South Korea is a civil law system that has its basis in the Constitution of the Republic of Korea.-History:The South Korean legal system effectively dates from the introduction of the original Constitution of the Republic of Korea and the organization of South Korea as an...
specifies solitary confinement for spies, even if they pose no physical threat.
Woo was held in solitary confinement in a 12-by-12 foot cell since his capture aboard a North Korean boat. The terms of his imprisonment permitted 30 minutes of daily exercise with other prisoners. In 1998, he was said to be "missing all his teeth because of years of torture, poor food, and inadequate medical treatment". In 1999, prior to his release, he was reported to be suffering from a degree of muscular paralysis
Paralysis
Paralysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
resulting from a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
Release and repatriation
Woo was among 17 long-term detainees released under a wider amnestyAmnesty
Amnesty is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent people, without changing the laws defining the offense. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the...
to mark President Kim Dae-jung
Kim Dae Jung
Kim Dae-jung was President of South Korea from 1998 to 2003, and the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize recipient. He came to be called the "Nelson Mandela of Asia" for his long-standing opposition to authoritarian rule.-Early life:...
's first year in office. As a 70 year old man, he walked free from the gates of Daejeon
Daejeon
Daejeon is South Korea's fifth largest metropolis and the provincial capital of Chungnam. Located in the center of the country, Daejeon had a population of over 1.5 million in 2010. It is at the crossroads of Gyeongbu railway, Honam railway, Gyeongbu Expressway, and Honam Expressway. Within the...
prison. It was proposed that he be allowed to return to North Korea, where he had a wife and son, in exchange for South Korean prisoners of war. He returned to North Korea, though not in exchange for any imprisoned South Koreans, in early September 2000.
External links
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/286070.stm BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
News report of 25 February 1999, including face image