In South Korea, which is a de facto country that has abolished the death penalty, a debate has begun on ``life sentences without parole.''

The Korean newspaper JoongAng Ilbo reported the news that on the 18th of this month, the Kofu District Court handed down the death sentence to a ``specified juvenile'' defendant who was charged with murder and other crimes for killing a couple in their 50s in Kofu City. the article is
, explained that this is the first time that a specified juvenile has been sentenced to the death penalty, and there has been no execution in South Korea since 1997, and there is discussion about the introduction of ``absolute life imprisonment,'' which means life imprisonment without parole.
I was told that it was starting. In October 2021, a couple in their 50s were murdered in their home in Kofu City, and an arson murder case occurred in which the house was completely burnt down. Unemployed Hiroki Endo (21) commits murder and construction of current residence
He was charged with arson and other crimes. On the 18th, the Kofu District Court handed down the verdict in the jury trial against Endo, and Presiding Judge Jun Mikami handed down the death penalty as requested. Defendant Endo was 19 years old at the time of the crime. The year before last, 1
The revised Juvenile Law, which classifies 8-year-olds and 19-year-olds as ``designated juveniles,'' has been enacted, and this is the first time a ``designated juvenile'' has been sentenced to death. In his ruling, Presiding Judge Mikami stated that the murder weapon, a paring knife, had been prepared in advance.
It was pointed out that the crime was planned and that he was able to control his actions in order to achieve his goal. The defense had argued that he had a mental disorder and had asked to avoid capital punishment, but the judge refused.
The judge concluded that he was fully responsible. Presiding Judge Mikami sentenced him to the death penalty, saying, ``Even if we take into account the fact that he is 19 years old, his chances of rehabilitation are low and there are no circumstances to avoid the death penalty.''
Ta. While reporting the news of this verdict, JoongAng Ilbo explained, ``Unlike Japan, where a minor (at the time of the crime) was sentenced to death, South Korea has not carried out the death penalty since 1997.''
Ta. However, the death penalty system itself has been maintained, and there are currently 59 death row inmates. Of the 38 member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), three countries maintain the death penalty: Japan, the United States, and South Korea.
Only. President Yoon Seo-gyeol has not publicly announced his position on the death penalty since taking office in May two years ago, but according to JoongAng Ilbo, President Yoon once wrote for Current Affairs Weekly.
In an interview with the magazine, he said, ``There are several analyzes that show that strong punishment is not proportionate to deterring crimes.'' However, in an article published in April last year, the newspaper said,
"I can feel the troubles of the administration," he said. ``The Yun administration has shown different positions at home and abroad,'' it said. The Yun administration put the idea of continuation of the death penalty at the fore in the Constitutional Court arguments held in July two years ago, but
Five months later, the United Nations General Assembly voted in favor of a moratorium on executions (effectively abolishing the death penalty). In response to this, the director of the Korea Institute for Criminal and Justice Policy said in an interview with the newspaper, ``Yun's government regarding the death penalty system
"This is a scene that shows a dilemma of rights." Under these circumstances, in October last year, the South Korean Ministry of Justice (equivalent to the Ministry of Justice) and the Bureau of Corrections arrested two death row inmates who were being held at the Daegu Detention Center in the southeast.
was transferred to Seoul Detention Center. One of the men was sentenced to death and is in prison for murdering 21 people and the other for killing a newlywed couple with a hunting rifle. Two people moved to Seoul Detention Center where executions can be carried out
At the time, attention was growing that this was a move for execution. However, it was not executed. In South Korea, a series of indiscriminate killings occurred from July to August last year.
As a result, feelings of punishment grew, and calls for the reinstatement of the death penalty system, which had been effectively abolished, grew louder. As mentioned above, there are currently 59 death row inmates in South Korea, but the JoongAng Ilbo reports that ``the first trial resulted in death row inmates.''
Even if a person is sentenced, most sentences will be commuted to life imprisonment after the second instance and the Supreme Court (Supreme Court).'' Since there is no life sentence, the next most severe punishment after the death penalty is life imprisonment with the possibility of parole.
It has become. In response to this current situation and the growing public sentiment towards punishment, a debate has arisen over the introduction of ``life sentences without parole.''
"Among those sentenced to prison terms, only those who are judged to require even harsher punishment will be subject to the condition of being ``non-paroleable.'' "Life sentence without parole" is described as "absolute life sentence"
did. Cho Hee-dae, who was appointed as the head of the Supreme Court last month, also expressed positive thoughts about establishing a new term of ``absolute life imprisonment.'' According to the paper, the chaperon of Koryo University Law School
In an interview with the newspaper, Professor Ng Young-soo pointed out, ``If life sentences without parole are introduced, the possibility of recidivism will be reduced.'' “Give courts another option to avoid death sentences, and
They could be punished even more severely." A related law was proposed by the government in October last year, and the future course of deliberations will be watched closely.