The death of Lee Geun-an, known for his torture methods on prisoners, has revived painful memories of human rights abuses during South Korea's military-backed authoritarian rule. Lee, dubbed the 'torture expert', never expressed remorse and referred to himself as a 'patriot', sparking criticism from survivors and human rights advocates.

The death of one of South Korea’s most notorious police officers, known for his torture methods on prisoners, has revived painful memories of human rights abuses during the country’s era of military-backed authoritarian rule. Lee Geun-an, dubbed the “torture expert”, succumbed to multiple organ failure on Thursday at the age of 88. He had faced lifetime criticism for never expressing remorse and referring to himself as a “patriot”, once comparing his interrogation methods to “art”. Survivors of....