China Sends North Koreans Back, Against Human Rights And Pledge

North Korea has been under the radar for human rights issues. A bunch of North Koreans try to escape the harsh conditions in their country by crossing the border into China. But the problem is, that China is sending them back to North Korea, where they could face really bad situations like forced labor or even torture.

Recently, South Korea and the United States had a meeting to talk about these human rights issues. South Korea’s Foreign Minister, Park Jin, met up with Julie Turner, who looks after North Korean Human Rights for the US. They agreed to work together to improve the situation for North Koreans, especially those trying to escape but getting sent back by China.

Also Read: UN Calls On China To Respect Right To Peaceful Protests

Park Jin, South Korea’s Foreign Minister, wasn’t too happy about this repatriation situation. He pointed out that North Korea is so focused on building nuclear weapons that they’re ignoring the basic rights of their people. Basically, he asked to stop sending these folks back to a place where they could suffer big time.

China’s reaction was kind of unclear. They didn’t confirm or deny sending people back. They just said they’re handling the issue “properly,” according to the laws.

Human Rights Watch, a big watchdog in the activism situations, is also not happy with China. They’ve reported that China has sent back more than 500 North Koreans recently, most of them women. These people could be forced into forced labor or even face torture when they go back to North Korea.

Also Read: China Opposes UNSC Meeting on North Korea Rights

But China is consistently sending them back which is a critical issue. Sending someone back to a place where they could face human rights abuses is prohibitable. International law and the recent pledge between the US and South Korea both call for protecting these individuals, not putting them in danger by sending them back.

In an ideal world, as per human rights standards and this new pledge, these escapees shouldn’t be sent back to North Korea against their will. They should be given a safe place to live until a more permanent solution can be found. That’s the decent and right thing to do.