On April 3, 2024, 141 migrant rights organizations from across South Korea gathered in front of the Seoul Seodaemun Police Station for a joint press conference. The event was held to publicly expose a group called “Jagungmin Bohosaengnyeon” (roughly, the “Korean Citizens Protection Alliance”) for its illegal arrests and assaults against undocumented migrants, and to call on police to reform their practices. The case eventually went to criminal trial: on January 21, 2025, the Daegu District Court sentenced Park Jin-jae, the group’s leader, to one year and two months in prison on charges including joint unlawful arrest under the Act on the Punishment of Violences. On September 11, 2025, the Supreme Court confirmed that prison sentence as final.

What Is the Korean Citizens Protection Alliance?

The Korean Citizens Protection Alliance was founded in December 2018 under the leadership of Park Jin-jae. While it claims to have been established to protect Korean citizens and promote public safety, its actual activities have been focused on vigilante enforcement against undocumented migrants.

Park, along with group members and far-right YouTubers, traveled around the country forcibly detaining people who appeared to be undocumented migrant workers and handing them over to police, a practice known as “joint unlawful arrest.” They mainly targeted migrant workers riding motorcycles without license plates, stopping them by force and then calling the police.

They also detained people who were not on motorcycles, and on some occasions they would visit the homes of migrant workers, claiming to have received a tip, block them from leaving, and then call the police.

Multiple videos posted on Park’s own YouTube channel show him and group members demanding ID from foreign nationals, grabbing them from behind, seizing them by the collar, and pressing down on their necks, shoulders, and solar plexus.

What the Migrant Rights Groups Exposed at the Press Conference

Specific Acts of Violence

According to a complaint submitted to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) by the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Migrant Solidarity Council, the Korean Citizens Protection Alliance engaged in the following:

  • Attacking gathering places of migrants while carrying clubs
  • Randomly checking ID and physically restraining migrants on the street
  • Entering migrants’ homes without permission and blocking their exits
  • Filming migrants without consent and posting the footage on social media

These acts constitute unlawful detention, intimidation, assault, trespassing, and defamation. Reports of migrants being forcibly robbed of money and belongings were also documented.

Problems With Police Conduct

The migrant rights organizations also pointed out cases where, instead of stopping the Korean Citizens Protection Alliance’s actions, police looked the other way or even cooperated, handing migrants over to immigration authorities. This, they argued, violated a key protection called the “reporting-duty exemption.”

What the Organizations Demanded

The 141 national migrant rights organizations made the following demands at the press conference:

  • Arrest and investigation of Park Jin-jae and the Korean Citizens Protection Alliance
  • Police operational reforms to prevent undocumented migrants from being exposed to vigilante violence
  • Creation of official police guidelines and training on applying the reporting-duty exemption
  • A halt to forced deportations of victim migrants and release from temporary detention
  • Government-level measures to eradicate hatred, discrimination, and violence against migrants

On January 21, 2025, the Daegu District Court sentenced Park Jin-jae to one year and two months in prison. Other members of the Korean Citizens Protection Alliance who were indicted alongside him received sentences ranging from six months to one year in prison (some suspended), plus fines of 5 to 8 million Korean won (roughly USD 3,700-6,000). Park appealed, but on September 11, 2025, the Supreme Court upheld the sentence of one year and two months in prison on charges of violating the Act on the Punishment of Violences (joint unlawful arrest) and joint assault, making it final.

On the day of the Supreme Court ruling, national migrant labor and human rights groups held their own press conference outside the court building, stating: “No one has the right to privately assault, arrest, or detain migrants simply because they are undocumented.” At the same time, they argued: “The one year and two months sentence is a relief, but it is still too light for the severity of what was done. A group that carried out vigilante arrests and used them as a source of profit must be firmly punished and disbanded so it has no place in this society.”

If You Have Been a Victim of Violence

Regardless of your immigration status, you can report assault, unlawful detention, trespassing, and similar crimes to the police by calling 112. Even if your undocumented status comes to light during the process, the reporting-duty exemption may apply if you are registered as a crime victim. For legal advice or support, contact the Immigration Contact Center (1345) by phone. The 1345 helpline offers consultations in multiple languages, not only Korean.

If the law and the system feel unfamiliar and overwhelming, please don’t worry. Migrant rights organizations across South Korea can help you get counseling and support.