Human Rights Commissioner Song Doo-hwan's Open Letter to the UN: "Forced Repatriation is a Crime Against Humanity... Active Intervention Needed"

Song Doo-hwan, Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission, sent an open letter to the United Nations, defining the forced repatriation of North Korean defectors as an inhumane act and requesting active cooperation from the international community.

On the 27th, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRCK) announced that on the 26th, Chairperson Song sent a letter to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Since the spread of COVID-19, North Korea had closed its borders, but recently, as the lockdown has been lifted, forced repatriation of North Korean defectors residing in China has resumed. Following the closing of the Hangzhou Asian Games, incidents of forced repatriation have been repeatedly revealed. If defectors are repatriated to North Korea, they may face torture or execution.

Through the letter, the NHRCK urged, "We request the international community to actively intervene so that the issue of forced repatriation of North Korean defectors in China can be given significant attention in the upcoming country-specific Universal Periodic Review of China and North Korea scheduled for next year, as well as in the report submitted by the UN Special Rapporteur on North Korean human rights to the Human Rights Council."

Furthermore, it stated, "We hope that through the active efforts of our government and the international community, the forced repatriation of North Korean defectors in China will be halted and that the lives and safety of defectors already repatriated to North Korea will be protected."

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