ICC Note:
In an attempt to flee great oppression, North Koreans flee to China as refugees. Among these refugees are many Christians. However, these North Korean defectors are often repatriated back to their home country. As a result of this, thousands of refugees are immediately tortured, forced to do hard labor and even killed in political prison camps for leaving the country. According to a United Nations report extensively detailing the widespread torture and abuse that North Korea is responsible for, China is guilty of violating its responsibility under international human rights and refugee laws. In note of this, demonstrations and candlelight vigils were held outside Chinese embassies in two dozen cities around the world including Washington, D.C., Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, Berlin, Paris, Seoul, London, Helsinki and others as a part of the annual Save North Koreans Day to honor those defectors who have been killed or imprisoned.
09/27/2016 China (The Christian Post) – Human rights activists in 24 cities around the world protested outside Chinese embassies on Friday and delivered petitions calling on the Chinese government to stop killing North Korean defectors by repatriating them back to their home country.
While it is an offense punishable by death or imprisonment for North Korean citizens to defect from the country and the oppressive Kim regime, the Chinese government helps facilitate North Korea’s crimes against humanity by refusing to grant North Korean defectors refugee status and by sending thousands of them back to North Korea knowing full well that they will be tortured, forced to do hard labor and even killed in political prison camps.
In 2014, a 400-page United Nations report extensively detailed the widespread torture and abuse that North Korea is responsible for and found that China is violating its responsibility under international human rights and refugee laws.
Organized the the North Korea Freedom Coalition, demonstrations and candlelight vigils to honor those defectors who have been killed or imprisoned were held outside Chinese embassies in two dozen cities around the world including Washington, D.C., Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, Berlin, Paris, Seoul, London, Helsinki and others as a part of the annual Save North Koreans Day.
Activists urged China to “stop killing North Koreans, and accused China’s president, Xi Jinping, of standing “side by side” with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un in “genocide.”
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