Hankook Ilbo Article:
“Court Orders State Compensation for Victims of Seongam Academy, Even Without TRC Review”

Originally published on June 25th, 2025, KST.
Posted to Paperslip on June 27th, 2025.
Translation via ChatGPT.
Some BOLDS ours.

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Paperslip Note — From KSS History:

Please note that KSS has a direct HISTORICAL connection to Seongam Academy through KSS’ Founder, Kun Chil Paik (alternately: Baek Geun-chil / Paik, Kun Chil / 백근칠):

”1949: Kun Chil Paik (alternately: Baek Geun-chil / Paik, Kun Chil / 백근칠) was a public official at the Kyung-gi (Gyeonggi) provincial government and his position in 1949 was the head of the notorious (Trigger Warning: Very Upsetting Content) Seongam Academy (선감학원 ).

Important Update: Please note that we do not know the exact nature of what Seongam Academy was like in the 1940s when KSS Founder Kun Chil Paik (alternately: Baek Geun-chil / Paik, Kun Chil / 백근칠), was Vice President and later President of Seongam Academy. We have recently learned that Seongam Academy may have been at its most notorious in the 1970s, which is decades after KSS Founder Baek Gun Chil was in charge of Seongam Academy. At this time we do not have any documentation to support this claim. When that becomes available, we will include it here.”

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“Hankook Ilbo
Court Orders State Compensation for Victims of Seongam Academy, Even Without Truth and Reconciliation Commission Review
Published: June 25, 2025, 4:17 PM
Reporter: Choi Da-won

Summary:

Even victims of the Seongam Academy case who did not apply for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission investigation are entitled to compensation, the court has ruled. Despite the government arguing that there was insufficient evidence of wrongdoing, the court acknowledged the plausibility of human rights violations and ruled in favor of the victims.

Seongam Academy, located on a remote island and known as the "child version of the Brothers Home" due to serious human rights abuses, has once again been found by a court to be a case where the state and local government must pay damages for emotional suffering. The court concluded that victims can be eligible for compensation if there is objective evidence confirming their internment—even if no official government investigation was conducted.

According to the legal community on the 25th, the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 14 (Presiding Judge Jeong Ha-jeong) ruled partially in favor of eight victims, including a person identified as "A", in their damages lawsuit against the South Korean government and Gyeonggi Province on June 18. Based on a compensation standard of 80 million KRW (approx. $58,000 USD) per year of confinement, individual awards ranged from 35 million to 500 million KRW.

Seongam Academy originated as a juvenile reformatory founded in 1942 by the Japanese Governor-General of Korea on Seongam Island in Ansan City, Gyeonggi Province. After Korea’s liberation, Gyeonggi Province took over and operated it until its closure in 1982. Though officially said to house "vagrants," in reality, even children with guardians were indiscriminately detained by police and forced into labor.

The full extent of the abuse was revealed in the 2020s. In 2022, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission officially deemed the Seongam case a "serious violation of children’s human rights" and recognized 167 individuals as victims. The Commission also noted that all of the more than 4,600 children recorded in the academy’s logs should be considered victims.

Although "A" and others did not file for a Truth and Reconciliation investigation themselves, they filed a lawsuit the following year based on the Commission’s conclusions. The government and Gyeonggi Province countered that those who were not formal applicants to the Commission had not proven unlawful acts occurred, and that their claims were barred by the statute of limitations.

The court rejected this argument, stating the Commission’s findings sufficiently support victim status and that the statute of limitations should be counted from the date the Commission's conclusions were issued. The ruling stated:

“The plaintiffs suffered violations of their physical freedom and human dignity at Seongam Academy. Therefore, the defendants share joint liability for compensation.”