Sep 15 2025, 09:59 AM, updated 3 months ago
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Their waists and hands were tied together, forcing them to bend down and lick water to drink. The unscreened bathrooms contained only a single sheet to cover their lower bodies. Sunlight barely penetrated through a fist-sized hole, and they were only allowed access to the small yard for two hours. Detained by US immigration authorities for eight days, the workers and their families expressed shock, describing human rights violations and absurdities they could not have imagined as ordinary Koreans living in 2025.
The 330 workers detained in a crackdown on illegal immigrants at a Hyundai-LG Energy Solutions joint battery plant in Georgia, USA, returned home on the 12th, and reports of human rights abuses they suffered during their detention are pouring in. Their testimonies from the 14th revealed a detention facility that violated all internationally recognized minimum standards for detainee treatment (Nelson Mandela Rules), including hygiene, communication with the outside world, the ability to raise objections, and the ability to explain the situation.
The arrest process itself was absurd. No one could properly understand the situation because there wasn't even a basic explanation, such as a Miranda rights notice. Mr. Seo, a 40-year-old employee at an LG Energy Solutions subcontractor, said, "I didn't even know I was under arrest. I thought it was a procedure to confirm my identity, but they asked me to sign some document." The family of Mr. K (48), an employee at another subcontractor, said, "They said they saw the word 'arrest' on the document and whispered that they shouldn't do it, but the agents were holding guns, so they ended up signing anyway." Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, who confiscated personal belongings such as cell phones in 'onion net'-like pockets, reportedly tied the workers' arms and legs with chains, and when that wasn't enough, they used 'cable ties' to restrain the workers.
Initially, the workers were herded into a 72-person temporary facility. According to one worker's detention diary, reported by Yonhap News that day, bunk beds were lined up, and the bed mats were moldy. Even basic supplies like toothpaste, toothbrushes, and blankets appeared to have only arrived the day after their detention. To combat the cold, the workers wrapped themselves in towels to warm themselves. Many workers only moistened their lips with water, which smelled, and their only food during their detention was canned beans and toast.
On the third or fourth day of detention, the workers were sequentially assigned to two-person rooms. They said the rooms, measuring approximately 4.96 square meters (1.5 pyeong), contained bunk beds and metal desks. The biggest problem was the bathroom. In a shared space, the toilet was “open,” with only a cloth covering the lower body. Cho Young-hee (44), a subcontractor worker, said, “It was a situation where menstruation was particularly not guaranteed as a human right. There was no way to solve it in an open bathroom.” For the workers, the only time they got sunlight was the two-hour daily outing to the “yard,” a narrow yard half the size of a basketball court.
Mr. K relayed his feelings at the time to the Hankyoreh through his family, confessing that he felt so helpless that he couldn't even protest the incomprehensible treatment. Mr. K's family said, "We are being held in such an inhumane detention without knowing what we did wrong, and the reality that no one is apologizing has really hit us hard." It is said that even when the South Korean consul and other officials visited the detainees, the workers continued to complain, "Shouldn't we find out what we did wrong?" The unexpected situation they encountered at the factory construction site, where they had gone to build a factory at the request of the United States, further heightened their fear.
Lee Seong-hun, vice president of the Korean Association for Human Rights and adjunct professor at Sungkonghoe University's Graduate School of Citizens and Peace, said, "Considering the testimonies so far, there are many aspects that do not meet international standards for the treatment of detainees, such as the arrest process, forcibly detaining dozens of people in one room, and providing poor bathrooms and food." He added, "The United States tends not to pay much attention to these aspects, but from our perspective, we can raise the issue from a human rights perspective."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, “From the beginning of the incident, the government has expressed regret to the United States and has continuously raised the point that the rights of our citizens should not be unfairly violated during the law enforcement process,” and “We have accepted some of our requests and made improvements, such as limited external calls and health checks by medical staff stationed at detention facilities, but we will closely investigate with the companies involved whether there were any shortcomings, such as whether there were unfair violations of the human rights or other rights of our citizens, and take necessary measures.”
The 330 workers detained in a crackdown on illegal immigrants at a Hyundai-LG Energy Solutions joint battery plant in Georgia, USA, returned home on the 12th, and reports of human rights abuses they suffered during their detention are pouring in. Their testimonies from the 14th revealed a detention facility that violated all internationally recognized minimum standards for detainee treatment (Nelson Mandela Rules), including hygiene, communication with the outside world, the ability to raise objections, and the ability to explain the situation.
The arrest process itself was absurd. No one could properly understand the situation because there wasn't even a basic explanation, such as a Miranda rights notice. Mr. Seo, a 40-year-old employee at an LG Energy Solutions subcontractor, said, "I didn't even know I was under arrest. I thought it was a procedure to confirm my identity, but they asked me to sign some document." The family of Mr. K (48), an employee at another subcontractor, said, "They said they saw the word 'arrest' on the document and whispered that they shouldn't do it, but the agents were holding guns, so they ended up signing anyway." Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, who confiscated personal belongings such as cell phones in 'onion net'-like pockets, reportedly tied the workers' arms and legs with chains, and when that wasn't enough, they used 'cable ties' to restrain the workers.
Initially, the workers were herded into a 72-person temporary facility. According to one worker's detention diary, reported by Yonhap News that day, bunk beds were lined up, and the bed mats were moldy. Even basic supplies like toothpaste, toothbrushes, and blankets appeared to have only arrived the day after their detention. To combat the cold, the workers wrapped themselves in towels to warm themselves. Many workers only moistened their lips with water, which smelled, and their only food during their detention was canned beans and toast.
On the third or fourth day of detention, the workers were sequentially assigned to two-person rooms. They said the rooms, measuring approximately 4.96 square meters (1.5 pyeong), contained bunk beds and metal desks. The biggest problem was the bathroom. In a shared space, the toilet was “open,” with only a cloth covering the lower body. Cho Young-hee (44), a subcontractor worker, said, “It was a situation where menstruation was particularly not guaranteed as a human right. There was no way to solve it in an open bathroom.” For the workers, the only time they got sunlight was the two-hour daily outing to the “yard,” a narrow yard half the size of a basketball court.
Mr. K relayed his feelings at the time to the Hankyoreh through his family, confessing that he felt so helpless that he couldn't even protest the incomprehensible treatment. Mr. K's family said, "We are being held in such an inhumane detention without knowing what we did wrong, and the reality that no one is apologizing has really hit us hard." It is said that even when the South Korean consul and other officials visited the detainees, the workers continued to complain, "Shouldn't we find out what we did wrong?" The unexpected situation they encountered at the factory construction site, where they had gone to build a factory at the request of the United States, further heightened their fear.
Lee Seong-hun, vice president of the Korean Association for Human Rights and adjunct professor at Sungkonghoe University's Graduate School of Citizens and Peace, said, "Considering the testimonies so far, there are many aspects that do not meet international standards for the treatment of detainees, such as the arrest process, forcibly detaining dozens of people in one room, and providing poor bathrooms and food." He added, "The United States tends not to pay much attention to these aspects, but from our perspective, we can raise the issue from a human rights perspective."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, “From the beginning of the incident, the government has expressed regret to the United States and has continuously raised the point that the rights of our citizens should not be unfairly violated during the law enforcement process,” and “We have accepted some of our requests and made improvements, such as limited external calls and health checks by medical staff stationed at detention facilities, but we will closely investigate with the companies involved whether there were any shortcomings, such as whether there were unfair violations of the human rights or other rights of our citizens, and take necessary measures.”
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