Chinese Repatriation of Refugees

One of the central points we keep repeating is that the North Korean refugees are—well--refugees. They have legitimate fear of persecution on return to their home country because of what must be considered a “political” belief (as the Refugee Convention requires): that they should enjoy the freedom to leave their own country. Moreover, the Refugee Convention—to which China is a signatory—specifically singles out repatriation (or “refoulement” in refugee-speak) as a no-no for quite obvious reasons.

All that may seem clear to most, but the Chinese have consistently denied it, treating the refugees as “economic migrants.” Even the South Korean government and public has had a hard time getting its head fully around the refugee concept given the complex nationality issue, as we pointed out in an earlier post. But at least South Korean authorities have consistently issued formal diplomatic demarches to Beijing when threatened deportations are looming; AFP reported on South Korean reaction to an earlier round-up in October.

The issue is once again rearing its ugly head as China contemplates the return of a number of North Koreans. Goodfriends #437 (released on January 11 and not yet posted on the English-language website) reported that Chinese authorities had repatriated ten border-crossers early in the year.

But more recent reports are getting much more attention.  Amnesty International reports on 21 refugees picked up by Chinese police on 8 February in separate locations in the city of Shenyang. A distressing detail is that “some” are believed to have had contact with members of a South Korean NGO that was helping them to exit. The North Korean authorities have periodically relaxed punishment for those crossing for purely economic motives, but contact with a South Korean organization is paramount to treason. Dong-a reports on a larger (and probably overlapping) group of 33 detained at various locations, and hinted at a broader crackdown on the part of the Chinese.

And just to be clear, the Chinese collaboration in returning these defectors is not arms length, but involves collaboration with DPRK State Security. In one of the crackdowns DPRK State Security even tracked cell phone signals by forcing those who were captured to make calls to other parties in hiding.

The particular concern is that North Korean regime has significantly tightened both control of the border and punishment for those caught crossing during the 100-day mourning period. Reportage on this remains a little sketchy. Dong-a claims that the regime has issued an edict that it will execute three generations of families caught crossing the border. This would seem over-the-top, but this is North Korea; it is well-known that the regime has used collective punishment and that whole families have been interred in the prison camps for the crimes of one member.

The news about killing three generations of families seems to originate from a December 23 Radio Free Asia (RFA) report which tells the story about a family from the city of Hyesan, Yanggang province. The family got caught by the border patrol attempting to cross the Yalu river on the very day North Korea announced the death of Kim Jong Il. One source, citing a local State Security official, said the family had become a high priority case that was reported all the way to an infuriated Kim Jong Un. Kim III personally ordered that border crossers be treated as “traitors” and that three generations of their families be executed. RFA said the captured family had 4 members, parents and two daughters who were under the age of 10. The source reports said that the parents and brothers of the captured family were arrested in the morning of the 21^st and transferred to a prison camp.

Goodfriends #439 (released in late January and also not currently posted) tells the story in a somewhat different way, saying “the Central Party has released an order through each provincial party that, “The mourning period for the death of Kim Jong Il is set for 100 days. During this period, anyone trying to cross the river into China or using a cellphone will be treated as a war criminal.” It makes no mention of the “execute three generations” order, but being identified as a “war criminal” can hardly be comforting.

The Chinese government has long been wary about the existence of networks of NGOs operating in the Northeast and has periodically cracked down on them. But a follow-up story by Dong-a noted that the concerns may also be domestic. As my colleague Susan Shirk has pointed out in an excellent volume on the Chinese media, the authorities have a harder time exercising control than is often thought.

Follow these interesting threads. According to Dong-a, its initial story was quoted in The Global Times, an English-language newspaper published by China`s People`s Daily. Interestingly, The Global Times is hardly considered a Western sop; to the contrary, it is known for its nationalist edge. Western media to which Chinese have access also carried the story, including the claim that if the defectors are repatriated, “Pyongyang will kill three generations of their families.”

When the story hit the Chinese microblogging community, the response was not exactly in line with Beijing’s policy. (“Isn’t killing three generations of a refugee’s family too cruel?”; “Can’t North Korea have humanity?”; “Under the current human rights situation in North Korea, repatriating the refugees is the same as murdering them.”) This on top of the little episode in which Weibo reported on Kim Jong Un’s assassination in Beijing.

The government’s nervousness was confirmed to me personally. A story in the Chinese press, in which I was to be quoted, was suddenly pulled as a result of warnings that the press should be “careful” about all North Korean coverage.

Such stories are difficult to confirm precisely because the Chinese are mute on them; to our knowledge, the South Korean NGO in question has also not stepped forward. But it doesn’t even have to be true in every detail for the US to restate principle. The Chinese should not be repatriating refugees, and particularly not into the North Korean gulag.

Suzanne Scholte's North Korea Freedom Coalition is on the case; following is her "urgent action" notice, complete with a sample letter and addresses.

Dear Friends:

Please take a few minutes of your time to help save the lives of North Korean refugees who have been arrested in China this past month by writing a letter, sending a fax and emailing the Chinese consulates and embassies appealing for the refugees to be allowed to go to South Korea.  Two considerations on the urgency of this matter are that in the groups that were recently arrested are refugees who have family members in South Korea: a 16-year-old boy whose older brother is in South Korea and a 19-year-old girl whose parents are in Seoul.  In fact, the parents of the young girl are so desperate that they have appealed to be allowed to send poison to their daughter so that she can commit suicide in China rather than face repatriation to North Korea.