Protect N. Korean defectors in China!: Activists including North Korean defectors rally in front of the Chinese Embassy in Seoul to call on Beijing to end its policy of repatriating North Koreans who flee their Stalinist homeland via China, Thursday. / Korea Times |
By Kim Young-jin
Seoul and Beijing will hold talks later this month on the issue of North Korean defectors detained in China amid growing concern over their possible repatriation, a diplomatic source said Thursday.
The talks, which will also touch on other topic of mutual concern comes amid concern over the latest group of North Korean defectors who are hoping for South Korean intervention to avoid repatriation to their homeland, where they are likely to face harsh punishment.
“South Korean diplomats will "emphasize again that China should not repatriate North Korean defectors against their will but should handle the issue from a humanitarian standpoint” the source said on condition of anonymity.
No date for the planned talks had been fixed.
Beijing repatriates North Korean refugees under a deal made with Pyongyang, its ally. Human rights activists say those repatriated face harsh punishment including torture and imprisonment in labor camps.
Other topics will include preventing illegal fishing by Chinese fishermen in South Korean waters, the source said. The sides could also lay the groundwork for formal negotiations for a free trade deal.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said early this month it would begin procedures later this month ahead of formal negotiations over a trade pact.
According to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, the most recent group of detained defectors was arrested by Chinese police at a bus terminal in the northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang on Feb. 8. They had planned to travel to South Korea to unite with family members.
A 19-year-old girl whose parents are living in the South and a 16-year-old boy with an older brother here who is a South Korean citizen are reportedly part of the group.
Tens of thousands of North Korean defectors are believed to be hiding in China, hoping to travel to Thailand or other Southeast Asian countries before resettling in South Korea, home to more than 23,000 North Korean defectors.
The meeting comes as the North has apparently ordered a harsh crackdown on defectors in the aftermath of the death of its longtime ruler Kim Jong-il late last year.
Reports emerged last month that three would-be defectors were shot dead as they attempted to cross the Amnok River (Yalu River). The report followed others that Pyongyang tightened border controls before the announcement of Kim’s death.
Observers said the harsh measures were likely an attempt to intimidate others from fleeing as mass defections could destabilize the fledgling regime of Kim’s youngest son, Kim Jong-un, who is being installed as the new leader.
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