Since August 8, 15 North Korean immigrants have been held at a Chinese detention center, where deportation to their home country is imminent. Deportation would not only involve being forcefully removed from their new country, but it would also mean a lifetime of punishment for the immigrants, and possibly even death. The Human Rights Watch has even considered North Korean immigrants as refugees, escaping from the restrictive government and fearing forceful deportation.
Since 2010, leaving North Korea without permission from the government has been considered “treachery against the nation,” which is met with punishments as severe as death. The North Korean Ministry of People’s Security adopted the new law and have since implemented it.
The 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry on human rights in North Korea reported crimes such as rape, execution, forced labor, and torture against the North Korean prisoners deported from China. In an effort to curb torture and other inhumane punishments for escaping the country, the United Nations has required China to allow North Koreans at risk for torture in North Korea to stay illegally. The Chinese are allowed to punish the illegal immigrants with forced labor in camps called “kyohwasos” rather than deporting them.
The deputy Asia director, Phil Robertson, has suggested that China should recognize the danger that the 15 North Koreans face if their deportation is pursued and should therefore take extreme efforts to ensure the immigrants' safety.
Returning home for these 15 North Koreans could mean extreme punishment, which is why China’s future actions are so important. The fate of these immigrants lies in China’s decision to grant the North Koreans asylum or turn them over to their home country coupled with years of prosecution.
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