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WHEN: Tuesday, March 20, 2012
WHERE: 11 am: The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C.
(sidewalk across from Lafayette Park)
12:00 noon: Embassy of the People's Republic of China, 3505 International Place, NW, Washington, D.C. 20008
1 pm: Embassy of the People's Republic of Korea, 2450 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington DC
WHO: North Korea Freedom Coalition, Korea Freedom Alliance, and Pilgrim Church
WHY: To Save North Koreans Facing Torture, Imprisonment and Execution
Washington, DC)...Despite appeals by the Republic of Korea, the United States, and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the People's Republic of China illegally forced over 40 North Korean refugees ranging in age from 71 years to infancy back to North Korea to face certain torture and execution. Among those repatriated were North Koreans whose family members were in South Korea including a 71 year old mother, a 19 year old daughter, a 16 year old brother, and a mother and her baby.
On March 20, activists will assemble at the White House at 11 am to release a letter urging President Barack Obama to call upon China to stop their policy of forced repatriation when he meets with President Hu Jintao for the Nuclear Security Summit in South Korea on March 26 and 27.
Following the White House visit, activists will go to the Embassy of the Republic of China to dramatize the fate of these refugees and deliver a letter to Hu Jintao citing his role in sending North Koreans to their death.
The activists will then stop by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea to deliver a letter encouraging President Lee Myung Bak and the South Korean government to continue their efforts in trying to save the lives of North Korean refugees in China.
Despite the fact that North Koreans face certain torture, certain imprisonment, and increasingly, execution for fleeing their homeland, China continues to force them back to North Korea in violation of its international treaty obligations. China is a signatory to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol.
Among those participating will be members of the North Korea Freedom Coalition, Korea Freedom Alliance and Pilgrim Church, which has become the home church for defectors residing in this area.
In related efforts, demonstrations will be occurring simultaneously on March 20th in Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles.
For further information contact NKFC at [email protected] or phone:
Dr. In Y. Park at 571-222-7313 or 276-971-7332 or
Suzanne Scholte at 703-534-4313
