Seoul Pessimistic About Fate of 65 Arrested Defectors


By Reuben Staines
Staff Reporter


South Korea voiced doubts Wednesday over whether it can convince China to hand over custody of 65 North Korean asylum-seekers arrested in a crackdown by Beijing police.

``We are still trying to confirm the arrests, but if it proves to be true then we will have to express our regret,’’ a government official said on condition of anonymity.

``However, even if we make a protest, China might not accept our request because it has not been opening these matters to negotiations in cases where defectors fail to enter a diplomatic compound,’’ he told reporters.

If China refuses to allow the refugees to travel on to Seoul, they will likely be sent back to North Korea and face strong punishment for defecting.

About 30 Chinese police raided a North Korean refugee shelter in eastern Beijing on Tuesday morning and arrested the defectors along with two human rights activists.

The activists were identified as Kim Hong-kyoon, 41, and Lee Soo-chul, 47, members of the Seoul-based Democracy Network Against North Korean Gulag who were born in North Korea but had defected to the South.

A Chinese Korean broker had reportedly been arranging for the defectors to storm into a South Korean mission in Beijing in a bid to reach Seoul.

Human rights groups said the police crackdown shows China is toughening its approach on the defector issue following a spate of attempts by North Korean asylum-seekers to enter foreign embassies.

Hours after the raid, the Chinese government warned embassies in Beijing to stop sheltering North Korean refugees.

``We hope these embassies will refrain from providing refuge to illegal immigrants,’’ Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said.

She complained that the asylum bids are organized by ``so-called religious and humanitarian organizations and individuals with ulterior motives.’’

Beijing faces a dilemma in dealing with North Korean refugees in its territory, estimated to number about 100,000.

The government has an agreement with communist ally North Korea to repatriate all defectors it catches and it officially considers them illegal ``economic migrants.’’ But under pressure from international human rights groups, China has been allowing refugees who successfully enter foreign missions to travel onward to South Korea.

At least five groups of defectors have stormed embassies and schools in Beijing seeking diplomatic shelter in the past month. On Monday, 18 North Koreans attempted to enter a South Korean consulate building in Beijing but only three succeeded in getting in. The remaining 15 were arrested by Chinese guards or fled the scene.

Kim Bum-soo, director for international affairs at the Commission to Help North Korean Refugees (CNKR) in Seoul, said the passage of the North Korean Human Rights Act by the U.S. government has caused an increasing number of defectors to make bids for asylum.

``China has surely taken note of this and is taking a strong stance on the issue,’’ he said. ``China’s position, although unacceptable, is quite understandable considering its relationship with North Korea.’’

Kim said many brokers helping refugees get to South Korea are working without support structures and the risks involved in storming embassies are great.

``It is urgent for the South Korean government to have a serious talk with NGOs and work out a way to better deal with this situation,’’ he stressed.

rjs@koreatimes.co.kr