WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The United States received five North Korean refugees in June, statistics showed Saturday, bringing the number of North Korean defectors who settled down in the States to 135 since 2006.
The U.S. has to date accepted 11 North Korean refugees for the fiscal year 2012 that began in December, according to figures released by the State Department.
The total breaks down to nine for the fiscal year 2006, 22 for 2007, 37 for 2008, 25 for 2009, eight for 2010 and 23 for 2011.
The North Korean refugees were admitted into the U.S. under the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004, which calls for the provision of financial aid to help improve North Korea's human rights and acceptance North Korean defectors into the U.S.
In 2008, Congress approved the North Korean Human Rights Reauthorization Act for another four years, calling for "activities to support human rights and democracy and freedom of information in North Korea," as well as "assistance to North Koreans who are outside North Korea," and 12-hour daily broadcasting to North Korea.
Hundreds of thousands of North Korean refugees are believed to be hiding in China.
Most North Korean refugees, fleeing poverty, aim to make their way to South Korea via neighboring China.
South Korea has received more than 20,000 North Korean defectors since the end of the 1950-1953 Korean War.
China has come under criticism for repatriating North Korean refugees under a secret agreement with North Korea, categorizing defectors as economic immigrants rather than refugees, despite the danger of persecution back home.
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