By Kim Young-jin
Four South Korean activists have been detained by China for nearly seven weeks on apparent suspicions of espionage, a human rights group said Tuesday.
Among the group is Kim Young-hwan, a former pro-North activist who later became a harsh critic of the regime, the foreign ministry confirmed.
The four were arrested in the northeastern city of Dalian on March 29, the ministry said without elaborating on the reason for their detention.
The Network for North Korean Democracy and Human Rights (NKnet) said they were incarcerated on suspicions of espionage and for being a “threat to national security,” citing a diplomatic source in Shenyang.
Reports said the group was interviewing North Korean refugees along the border.
Kim met with a South Korean diplomat in Shenyang late last month, the ministry said, adding that it confirmed that no human rights violations had occurred.
The three others provided statements through Chinese authorities saying they declined contact with South Korean diplomats, the ministry said. An official said the government was confirming whether they relinquished the right of their own free will.
The remaining three have not been allowed to meet with diplomats or attorneys, NKnet said.
A foreign ministry official said Seoul has urged China to handle the case quickly and fairly.
Kim, who went to the North clandestinely in 1991 and met with late leader Kim Il-sung, later renounced his pro-Pyongyang leanings. He later became well known for raising awareness on the North’s human rights abuses.
Kim is believed to be in Dandong. The location of the remaining three was not immediately clear.
In a release, NKnet said Chinese authorities had denied the detainees any access to family members.
“We ask the Chinese government to follow international law and allow the South Koreans to meet with consular officials and family members,” it said in a release.
South Korean and other rights activists work along the Chinese border to help North Koreans fleeing the Stalinist regime. Beijing repatriates defectors under a deal with the North.
The activists usually help defectors travel to the South via third countries. Over 23,000 North Koreans have gained citizenship here since the 1950-53 Korean War.
Beijing came under increasing fire to end the repatriations earlier this year when protests broke out in front of the Chinese Embassy in Seoul, sparked by reports that a group of defectors would be repatriated.