Ministry of Unification Releases Video of North Korean Fishermen Repatriation at Panmunjom (Comprehensive)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] The Ministry of Unification released footage on the 18th showing North Korean fishermen who defected being repatriated to North Korea through Panmunjom in November 2019.

The approximately 4-minute video distributed to the press corps by the Ministry of Unification that afternoon clearly shows one of the defecting fishermen kneeling and hitting his head on the ground in self-harm as he crossed the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) at Panmunjom.

The South Korean police special forces escorting him were heard saying, "Hey hey hey," "Come out," and "Catch him," trying to help him stand up.

Eventually, the fisherman was surrounded by the escort personnel and crawled forward on his knees toward the MDL.

The scene of him crossing the MDL and being handed over to the North Korean side was not captured in the video.

Following that, another fisherman walked out from the South Korean side’s Peace House surrounded by escort personnel and walked toward the MDL without any particular resistance.

At the beginning of the video, there is a scene showing the two men, each tied with handcuffs, going up to the second floor of the Freedom House.

They wore black and blue tops respectively, and the video also captured them sitting down on chairs in the waiting room.

The video includes audio of South Korean personnel asking, "Is this the luggage they brought?" while handling the bags they carried.

However, no sounds or scenes of shouting or strong resistance were captured when they were handed over to the North Korean side.

Earlier, on the 11th, the Ministry of Unification stated that the defecting fishermen are constitutionally citizens of the Republic of Korea and that considering the various harms they would face upon repatriation, the decision to send them back was wrong. The following day, photos from the repatriation were released.

In the photos, an employee filming the situation at the time was spotted, prompting Tae Young-ho, a member of the People Power Party, and others to suggest the existence of video footage and call for its release.

Subsequently, the Ministry of Unification confirmed that an employee present at the Panmunjom repatriation personally filmed video footage and legally reviewed whether the footage could be submitted to the National Assembly and others.

Immediately after the incident, the Ministry emphasized the legitimacy of repatriation by highlighting that the defecting fisherman was a heinous criminal who killed 16 fellow crew members and fled. However, it has effectively reversed its stance by consecutively releasing photos and videos from the repatriation, emphasizing the sincerity of the defecting fishermen’s intention to defect.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.