South Korean Citizens Become Targets For US Immigration Raids, President Lee Threatens To Attract Investment

Atlanta, the capital of the state of Georgia in the US. (Mariananna totals Unsplash)

JAKARTA - The South Korean government (South Korea) will review alleged human rights violations when hundreds of its citizens were detained in a massive immigration raid in the United States (US).

About 475 people, mostly South Korean nationals, were arrested at the construction site of an electric vehicle battery factory in the state of Georgia, USA, on September 4.

The raid was the largest site operation to be carried out since US President Donald Trump launched a thorough immigration crackdown.

Images of workers handcuffed and handcuffed South Korea, sparking harsh criticism from Seoul.

After tough diplomatic negotiations, detained South Korean workers were released and flown back to Seoul.

Some workers told local media about their condition during immigration arrests, including allegations that they were detained without being notified of their rights.

When asked about the allegations, the presidential office in Seoul said it was conducting a thorough review.

"Our party and the US are examining whether there are shortcomings in the steps taken, and companies are also investigating," presidential spokesman Kang Yu-jung said at a press conference, quoted by AFP.

"Together with related companies, we are conducting a more thorough review of possible human rights violations," he continued.

One of the workers told the Yonhap News Agency that their rights were not read out when they were arrested.

The worker also told the news agency that they were angry that ICE agents mocked them with words about "North Korea" and "rocket human" an insult Trump had previously made against Pyongyang leader Kim Jong Un.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said the raid could have a bad impact on investment in the future. He seemed to threaten to attract investment in the US if the security of its citizens was threatened.

South Korean companies "want to question whether setting up factories in the US is worth the potential risk," Lee said.

In response, Trump said on Sunday that foreign workers were "attend" and he didn't want to "frighten" investors.

"I don't want to scare or reduce investment incentives," he wrote on his Truth Social platform.