Transforming South Korea’s approach to migrant justice by challenging immigration detention through legal advocacy and civic innovation.

Hahnjae Lee is an attorney at law with the Duroo Association for Public Interest Law, where he specializes in immigrant and refugee rights. Hahnjae leads efforts to drive policy reform, conducts strategic impact litigation, offers counseling to immigrant communities, and leads public awareness campaigns on migrant rights. Hahnjae also founded and coordinates the Immigration Detention Response Network, a national coalition that centers the voices of detained migrants and asylum seekers to drive systemic change. Hahnjae’s focus on the Scholars program is to explore strategies for achieving a reform of immigration detention in South Korea by driving policy change, building a new organization to lead this effort, and acquiring the professional skills necessary to support it. Through this work, he hopes to develop a new model of a lawyer-activist who can lead social transformation in South Korea.

Hahnjae Lee holds a Juris Doctor from Seoul National University and is a licensed attorney in Republic of Korea. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Studies from Yonsei University in Seoul.