MangoVine
Adventures in East Asia

Torture Scenes at Seoul’s Seodaemun Prison

 19 July, 2009
Sunday

Something drew Linh and I to Seodaemun Prison. I'd like to say it was because of its significance in the historic Japanese colonial rule over Korea. Which is true. But it was especially because of its grim and gruesome past.

Seodaemun-Prison-Torture1

The prison is located very close to Dongnimmun metro station and only cost us 1,500 KRW (75p) each to enter.

We visited Seodaemun Prison when it was undergoing some maintenance work, and without realising it, we found ourselves taking the tour route backwards. After getting our tickets at the entrance, our first sight was a building site.

Seodaemun-Prison-Building-Works

The prison was the site of suffering for Korean independence fighters who challenged the Japanese colonial rule between 1910 and 1945. The Japanese were brutal and attempted "cultural genocide" by banning the Korean language and forcing the population to adopt Japanese names.

Seodaemun-Prison-Death-Row

Japanese brutality was depicted in the modern day exhibits through some interactive videos, models and infoboards in one building - also containing scenes in court and jail - and a whole host of graphic displays inside the cells of another block.

Seodaemun-Prison-Judgement

Seodaemun Prison was actually built to house five hundred prisoners, but up to three thousand were packed in at one point.

Seodaemun-Prison-Cells

Around forty thousand freedom fighters in total passed through the establishment and at least four hundred died or were killed inside.

Seodaemun-Prison-Torture2

The cell block packed with scenes of torture was by far the most horrific part of the prison visit, leaving little to the imagination and only slightly lightened by the clean and brightly-lit interiors.

Seodaemun-Prison-Torture3

Prisoners were tortured and beaten daily and overcrowding and lack of food was common place.

Seodaemun-Prison-Torture4

Though our visit left me fascinated by the sheer brutality the Koreans endured, it was laced with sadness that such events happened at all.

More photos of Seodaemun Prison on Flickr.

Seodaemun-Prison-Lookout-Tower

This entry posted in : Attractions. History. South Korea.

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Comments

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20/12/09  at  06:19 PM it is made up though? .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
21/12/09  at  05:30 PM I think the scenes were modeled on what happened in real life. Comment page 1 of 1 pages Commenting is not available in this section entry.
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