Five N. Korean defectors repatriated in April: Chinese report

SHENYANG, China, Sept. 21 (Yonhap) -- Chinese authorities repatriated five North Korean women in April who were caught attempting to cross into Thailand, a local newspaper has reported.

According to the Sept. 20 edition of the local newspaper Du Shi Shi Bao, the five
North Koreans, suspected of being defectors, were arrested by police at a train
station in the southwestern city of Kunming on April 21, before being forcibly
repatriated to their home country.
The report said the North Korean women were on their way to Jinghong, which
borders Myanmar to the southwest and Laos to the southeast.
China, which maintains an agreement with North Korea for the repatriation of
North Korean defectors, has refused to grant refugee status to North Korean
defectors and considers them economic migrants, despite reports that those being
repatriated face persecution, including imprisonment or execution.
Seeking to deflect criticism of its human rights record, however, China has often
permitted North Korean defectors taking refuge in foreign missions here to exit
the country via a third nation.
sam@yna.co.kr
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