An Uzbek student who was forced to leave South Korea by officials at Hanshin University in November 2023 has filed a damages lawsuit against the university along with her husband.
According to local media reports Thursday, the 23-year-old student and her 32-year-old husband filed the suit with the Suwon District Court, seeking 100 million won ($69,200) in damages.
The Uzbek couple claimed the university’s actions caused psychological harm and disrupted the student’s education.
On Nov. 12, 2023, the student boarded a bus after university officials informed Uzbek students that they were being taken to an immigration office. The university allegedly confiscated the students’ mobile phones, and the bus instead headed to Incheon Airport.
All but one of the 23 students were made to leave the country. The plaintiff was separated from her husband for five months.
Hanshin University stated at the time that it had “instructed departure due to inevitable circumstances.”
The school said most of the students had failed to submit bank balance certificates required by the Justice Ministry. The university explained that it had advised students to depart voluntarily to prevent them from losing their legal status and remaining in the country undocumented, which could disadvantage both the students and the institution.
However, subsequent media reports revealed that university staff accompanied the students to the departure gates and monitored them, effectively forcing them to leave. The university later apologized.
Earlier this month, prosecutors indicted three former university officials without detention on charges including overseas abduction, unlawful detention and coercion.
Authorities also charged a former head of a local immigration office for allegedly receiving 2 million won worth of entertainment from university staff.
“The victim had already submitted the required bank balance certificate, which made the incident even more shocking,” said Choi Jung-kyu, the couple's attorney. “Given the seriousness of the unlawful conduct and the university’s failure to uphold its responsibilities as an educational institution, the school bears liability for damages.”
seungku99@heraldcorp.com
