As record heat persists, prison inmates swelter amid air conditioning standoff

As record-breaking heat pushes temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius, inmates at correctional facilities across South Korea face mounting hardship — with particular concern for elderly prisoners and those with diabetes, whose health could deteriorate rapidly.

The Ministry of Justice had planned to install air conditioners in housing units for inmates most vulnerable to heat-related illness, including the elderly and those with disabilities, but scrapped the project entirely after a fierce public backlash.

The decision reflects public criticism that taxpayer money should not be spent on air conditioning for criminals. Observers warn, however, that the reversal is making inmate management increasingly difficult and pushing correctional officers' working conditions to the breaking point.

The ministry had originally budgeted about 1.2 billion won ($846,000) this year to expand air conditioning in the corridors of housing units where heat-vulnerable inmates — including the elderly, people with disabilities and those with medical conditions — live, according to News1.

Currently, air conditioners inside correctional facilities are installed only in the corridors of medical housing units where sick inmates are held.

With the air conditioning plan shelved, fears of dangerous heat inside correctional facilities are becoming reality. When Seoul's high temperature hit 36.9 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, cell interiors at Seoul Detention Center reached 33 degrees. At one correctional facility in the greater Seoul area the same day, cell temperatures reportedly climbed as high as 37 degrees.

The Correctional Headquarters is separately monitoring the health of inmates with chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes, as well as those aged 65 and older, and is housing high-risk individuals in medical cells.

For the general inmate population, authorities are distributing ice water and arranging immediate medical consultations and prescriptions for anyone reporting symptoms of heat-related illness.

The extreme heat is also fueling tensions among inmates, with fights breaking out more frequently and inmates repeatedly summoning correctional officers without cause — adding to the strain on prison staff.

Experts say a minimum level of cooling infrastructure is essential, both to fulfill the basic correctional and rehabilitative purpose of detention facilities and to improve the deteriorating working conditions of correctional officers.

Lee Geon-su, a professor at Baekseok University's Department of Police Studies, said correctional facilities exist "to rehabilitate inmates and help them reflect on their crimes," adding that "if conditions become extreme, a second crime can emerge from within."

Justice Minister Jeong Seong-ho said Thursday that he had "repeatedly told the president in closed Cabinet sessions that conditions in correctional facilities are very poor," and that "the president expressed deep concern over the serious overcrowding and the suffering endured by correctional civil servants, and discussed countermeasures."