"Yoon Should Express 'Determination to Resolve POW Issues' in UN Speech"

General Debate at UN General Assembly Scheduled in New York on the 20th
"Yoon Should Express Determination to Resolve POW Issue in Keynote Speech"
North Korea Border Opening... "Concerns Over Forced Repatriation of North Korean Defectors in China"

Human rights organizations have sent a letter urging President Yoon Suk-yeol to clearly demonstrate his commitment to resolving the issue of Korean War prisoners of war (POWs) in his upcoming keynote speech at the United Nations General Assembly, and to lead diplomatic efforts to hold North Korea accountable. The letter also calls for a strong stance on concerns over the forced repatriation of North Korean defectors residing in China, demanding pressure on China’s human rights violations on the international stage.

On the 12th, twelve human rights organizations, including the Korean War POW Families Association, the North Korea Human Rights Citizens’ Alliance (NKHR), and the Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG), sent a letter urging President Yoon to address the issues of Korean War POWs, abductees, and detainees at the UN platform. The 78th UN General Assembly is scheduled to be held at the UN Headquarters in New York on the 20th (local time), and President Yoon is expected to deliver a keynote speech again this year, following last year.

President Yoon Suk-yeol is delivering a keynote speech at the general debate of the 77th United Nations General Assembly held at the UN Headquarters in New York in September 2022.

The organizations pointed out, "For the past 70 years, North Korea has blatantly violated the Armistice Agreement and the Geneva Conventions by refusing to repatriate 50,000 Korean War POWs and approximately 100,000 civilian abductees," adding, "Since the 1953 Armistice Agreement, North Korea has not returned at least 516 Korean War POWs and civilian abductees, including those from the Vietnam War and the naval broadcast ship 'I-2' capture incident." North Korea is currently detaining at least six South Korean citizens (Kim Guk-gi, Choi Chun-gil, Kim Jeong-uk, Kim Won-ho, Go Hyun-cheol, and one unidentified person) over the past decade.

They emphasized the significance of maintaining a 'consistent message' regarding these issues, recalling that President Yoon and U.S. President Joe Biden first declared a "joint effort to resolve the issues of Korean War POWs, abductees, and detainees" during their summit in April this year, and that the leaders of South Korea, the U.S., and Japan reaffirmed their "shared commitment to the immediate resolution of the issues of abductees, detainees, and unrepatriated Korean War POWs" at the trilateral summit held at Camp David last month.

Shin Hee-seok, legal analyst at the Transitional Justice Working Group, stated, "President Yoon should address the issues of Korean War POWs, abductees, and detainees in his keynote speech at the UN General Assembly, realizing shared values such as human rights, democracy, the rule of law, and holding North Korea accountable." He urged, "These issues should continue to be discussed not only at the UN but also at other international forums, and diplomatic efforts should be led to demand the immediate repatriation of all our citizens, including the remains of the deceased, from North Korea."

North Korea Opens Borders...Concerns Over Mass Forced Repatriation of North Korean Defectors in China

North Korean women are working at a construction site along the Amnok River.

The letter sent to President Yoon also included demands that the South Korean government take a clear stance on concerns over the forced repatriation of North Korean defectors residing in China. The organizations warned, "If defectors are repatriated, they may be subjected to human rights abuses such as torture, sexual violence, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and even execution, forced abortion, and infanticide." They expressed concern that "despite the UN Refugee Convention and the Convention Against Torture, which prohibit forced repatriation, China continues to arbitrarily detain and forcibly repatriate North Korean defectors."

The Chinese government classifies North Korean defectors as "illegal immigrants" rather than refugees. According to reports from the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in North Korea (COI) and others, defectors in China, especially women who cannot reveal their identities, are defenselessly exposed to numerous crimes such as human trafficking, forced marriage, and sexual assault. Notably, North Korea has recently been gradually reopening its border with China, and if human exchanges resume around the Asian Games in Hangzhou at the end of this month, North Korean defectors in China are expected to be the first targets for repatriation.

In this regard, James Heenan, head of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Seoul office, pointed out at a North Korea human rights dialogue hosted by the Ministry of Unification on the 7th, themed "The Crisis of Forced Repatriation of North Korean Defectors in China and Response Measures," that "many North Koreans detained by Chinese authorities during the past three years of border closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic could be repatriated at any time as the borders begin to reopen." It is known that over 2,000 defectors have been detained in Chinese detention facilities since the spread of COVID-19.

In September 2018, North Korean women dressed in hanbok participated in the "International March for Peace, Prosperity, and Reunification of Korea" held on the outskirts of Pyongyang. [Image source=AFP·Getty image]

Voices criticizing China’s repatriation policy have been growing in the international community. In May, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) pointed out human rights issues concerning North Korean defectors in China for the first time and recommended improvements to China. In June, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), a bipartisan body under the U.S. Congress, held a hearing on the "Forced Repatriation Crisis of North Korean Defectors in China," sharply criticizing the Chinese government. However, the South Korean government has only repeated a general stance of "opposing forced repatriation and requesting cooperation from China."

Legal analyst Shin Hee-seok emphasized, "Just as we demand human rights improvements from North Korea, we must be able to point out the problems of China’s forced repatriation policy regardless of South Korea-China relations." He reiterated, "President Yoon should take the opportunity of this year’s UN General Assembly general debate to urge the Chinese government to stop arbitrary detention and forced repatriation of North Korean defectors and to implement procedures for refugee status determination."

Meanwhile, at the 77th UN General Assembly general debate held last September, President Yoon was the tenth head of state to deliver a keynote speech, stating, "Today, the international community’s freedom and peace are once again threatened by changes of the status quo by force, weapons of mass destruction including nuclear weapons, and collective violations of human rights." In his 11-minute speech, he mentioned "freedom" 21 times.

▶Below are the signatories of the letter: 1 individual, 12 human rights organizations

Mr. Kim Jeong-sam (brother of missionary Kim Jeong-uk, detained in North Korea since 2013), North Korea Human Rights Citizens’ Alliance (NKHR), Han Voice, North Korea Human Rights Promotion Center, North Korea Justice Network, Korean War POW Families Association, Moolmangcho, No Chain, North Korea Strategy Center (NKSC), Save NK, Jinggeomdari, THINK, Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG)

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