Yeoju, South Korea - Korea's first private prison could open in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province within three years. The Agape Spiritual Center, a “pan-denominational” Christian group that has been pushing for such a facility, on Monday said it received construction approval from the government of Yeoju County and completed the administrative procedures to establish a prison. The group is to begin construction in April once it has found a contractor.
This prison aims at reducing the recidivism rate to less than 5 percent through correctional programs based on what the group says are Christian beliefs. The organization has been pushing for its private prison program here for some 13 years.
Agape models its program after the Humaita Prison in Brazil, where recidivism is about 4 percent. In 1999, the National Assembly in response to the movement passed a law for the establishment and operation of private prisons. In 2002, Agape and the Ministry of Justice signed a contract for the establishment and operation of a private prison. On three occasions since 2005, Agape has operated a temporary jail in Yeoju prison on a trial basis for some 30 inmates for six months at a time.
The group says the jail will accommodate any prisoners who want to change, whether they are Christians or not. About 600 professional volunteers in various fields will offer religious training, mentoring support or counseling, supervise reconciliation programs between inmates and their victims, run “cultural care” clinics, or provide job training programs. After inmates are released, Agape says it will help them find jobs, and their supporters and churches will help them adapt to society.