Workers who were arrested and detained at the joint battery construction site of Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution in Georgia are preparing to sue U.S. immigration authorities. They said there has been no explanation from U.S. authorities as to why the arrests and detentions happened, even now that they are over, and they plan to seek damages for human rights violations and racial discrimination they experienced during the arrests and detentions. The lawsuit, however, will be filed by individuals, not by the companies.

On Sept. 4 (local time), U.S. immigration authorities detain about 300 Korean workers at the construction site of the Hyundai Motor Group–LG Energy Solution joint battery plant in Georgia, conduct body searches, then send them to a detention facility in handcuffs and leg irons. /Courtesy of ICE website capture

According to ABC on the 11th (local time), about 200 of the roughly 317 Koreans who were arrested and detained are preparing to sue U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). A person surnamed Kim, who was among those detained, said in an interview with ABC, "There has been no explanation from U.S. authorities so far as to why the arrests and detentions took place," and added, "I intend to file a lawsuit to prove that I did nothing wrong." Kim also said there were human rights violations, noting, "While I was detained, guards talked about North Korea or made a gesture of pulling their eyes to the sides to demean Asians."

U.S. immigration authorities, including ICE, arrested a total of 475 people at the Georgia plant on Sept. 4 and detained them for seven days, including 317 Koreans. Of the 317 Koreans who were arrested and detained, 47 were employees of LG Energy Solution, 210 were employees of LG Energy Solution partner companies, and 60 were employees of Hyundai Engineering; the remainder were foreign nationals.

The issue is that about half of the Koreans who were arrested and detained held short-term business (B-1) visas that legally allow equipment installation and test operations in the United States. The rest held Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). ESTA can be issued remotely and allows stays in the United States for up to 90 days per visit over two years. It is used for noncommercial short-term business trips, travel, or transit, and it has been customary to conduct business meetings and contract discussions on ESTA.

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