Koo Byoungsam, spokesperson of South Korea’s Unification Ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said Seoul did not have information on the exact number of North Koreans repatriated from northeast China or how many of them were “escapees, medical patients or criminals.”
His comments followed several media reports based on activist sources that alleged China recently returned hundreds of escapees back to North Korea where they would face the risk of persecution and harsh treatment.
“(Our) government’s position is that there should be no circumstances in which North Koreans living abroad would be forcibly repatriated back home against their will.”
When asked about the alleged repatriations of North Koreans on Thursday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin did not confirm the reports but said Beijing has been “properly” handling North Koreans who illegally entered the country based on “relevant domestic laws, international law and humanitarian principles.”
Citing an activist account, the Human Rights Watch in a report on Thursday alleged that China this week used several vehicle convoys to forcibly return more than 500 people who had escaped North Korea.
The group said most of the returnees were women and expressed concerns that they were at “grave risk” of being detained in forced labor camps, and potentially face torture and other violence.
The original article contains 334 words, the summary contains 210 words. Saved 37%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!