South Korean court posthumously acquits teacher after 54 years
The Seoul High Court in South Korea has posthumously acquitted history teacher Song Gi Ho, who was convicted in 1972 of violating the National Security Act and the now-repealed Anti-Communism Act. The court concluded that the evidence in the case had been obtained illegally, Korea Herald reports.
Court finds detention unlawful
Song Gi Ho was accused of failing to report information related to alleged North Korean espionage activities. He claimed that investigators from the Army Security Command — the predecessor of the current Defense Counterintelligence Command — forced him into making false confessions through torture, threats and prolonged detention.
Investigation records stated that on March 22, 1972, the teacher allegedly voluntarily traveled with officers from his home in Busan to Seoul. However, the court found this version implausible. School records showed that he had been removed from teaching as early as March 17 — five days before the date when investigators claimed they first took him away.
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The court also noted that on the same day he allegedly arrived in Seoul from Busan, wrote two statements by hand and underwent a formal interrogation. The court concluded that investigators likely arrested and detained him without a warrant. The statements obtained during the unlawful detention were deemed inadmissible evidence, and there was insufficient other evidence to uphold the conviction.
Conviction destroyed his career
At the time of his detention, Song Gi Ho taught history at a high school in Busan. On September 13, 1972, the court of first instance sentenced him to 18 months in prison. An appellate court upheld the verdict but suspended the sentence for five years. On April 24, 1973, the Supreme Court rejected his final appeal, after which the verdict became final.
On the same day, the teacher was dismissed from the school and later lost his pension. He died on September 13, 1994, at the age of 56. His family continued seeking a review of the case, and earlier this year the court allowed a retrial. During it, prosecutors also acknowledged that the teacher was likely unlawfully detained for at least five days.
