Hyundai Asan worker Yu Seong-jin, who had been detained in North Korea for 136 days, poses for photographers after crossing the border at the Dorasan Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Office in Paju Thursday.
/ Korea Times |
By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter
A South Korean worker detained in North Korea for 136 days was released Thursday following a visit to the secretive state by Hyun Jung-eun, chairwoman of Hyundai Group.
The government hailed his return and promised to prevent any similar incident from recurring.
``I am glad to come back. I deeply appreciate the government, Hyundai Asan and the people for making efforts and showing concern,'' Yu Seong-jin said upon his arrival at the Dorasan Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Office near the inter-Korean border.
Yu, looking gaunt in black pants and beige-colored shirt and cap, did not elaborate on his captivity, shaking off a reporters' grip as he got into a black van and left.
He was taken to a hospital in Seoul for a medical checkup before being questioned about the circumstances of his detention, according to a Unification Ministry official.
The 44-year-old engineer working in the Gaeseong Industrial Complex for Hyundai Asan was detained on March 30 for allegedly making derogatory comments on the North Korean regime and attempting to entice a woman to defect to the South.
North Korea had refused to allow South Korean officials and attorneys to see him during his confinement, saying he was doing fine.
Ministry spokesman Chung Hae-sung told reporters that North Korea allowed the employee to leave by ``exiling'' him.
Chung said, ``It is a relief that Yu has been released … but this kind of incident should not happen again.''
The spokesman remained silent over the details on Yu's detention, saying an investigation was now underway.
The Hyundai Group chairwoman made the trip to the North in the wake of former U.S. President Bill Clinton's visit to Pyongyang last week to secure the safe return of two detained American journalists.
She was expected to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il to discuss the release of Yu and the resumption of a tour program to Mt. Geumgang, suspended since July last year after the death of a South Korean tourist in a shooting incident.
However, there have been no reports of a meeting.
Hyun originally planned to return to Seoul Wednesday but extended her stay in the isolated state twice for unknown reasons.
She is scheduled to return home today.
Prof. Yang Moo-jin at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul said the release of Yu could ``jumpstart'' inter-Korean relations as well as improve operations of the industrial park.
``The matter of the detainee was a major pending issue with regard to operations at the complex, so I think his release will positively affect future meetings between the two Koreas,'' he said.
``But whether or not further advancements are made will depend on the South Korean government,'' he added.
Meanwhile, the fate of four crewmembers of a fishing boat also detained in North Korea remains unclear.
The ``800 Yeonan'' with the four-man crew crossed over the Northern Limit Line and was intercepted by a North Korean patrol boat on July 30. The vessel is though to have suffered a malfunction in its navigation system.
North Korea is presumed to be holding them as a bargaining chip in future negotiations with South Korea, according to observers.
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