The Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG) has shed light on the grim reality faced by North Korean defectors through their latest report, prompting urgent international attention. TJWG continues to spread awareness and get people involved. Many civilians have disappeared by North Korean forces.
North Korean Enforced Disappearances
A South Korean advocacy group, the TJWG, has released a significant report exposing enforced disappearances of North Koreans attempting to defect. Titled “Existing ‘Nowhere:’ Looking into North Korea’s Crime of Enforced Disappearance,” the report details over 100 missing individuals, collated through interviews and a large mapping project.
The TJWG conducted interviews with 62 defectors, yielding data from 66 cases involving 113 disappearances. North Korean apparatuses like the Ministry of State Security, border guards, and others, often in concert with Chinese authorities, have enforced these disappearances in 81.4% of cases.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS: Over 100 North Korean Defectors Caught By Secret Police Gone Missing, Says Rights Group pic.twitter.com/IN8W2Q7Zkq
— Aneke Tv (@AnekeTv) October 31, 2024
Geopolitical Collaborations
Additional findings showed that 79.6% of victims were rounded up within North Korea, while 20.4% faced capture abroad, notably in China and Russia. Alarmingly, the crackdown impacted not only escapees but their families, with 47.8% of victims being relatives of those interviewed. This stresses the regime’s strategy of undermining dissent through fear and intimidation tactics.
Victims belonged mostly to the young adult demographic, with 38.9% in their 20s and 30s, and a concerning 11.5% were children under ten. The attempt to flee North Korea, associations with defectors, and any political criticism were catalysts for these enforced disappearances.
Dozens of North Korean defectors caught by secret police 'vanish', says rights group https://t.co/uuJpWU51yk
— CTV News (@CTVNews) October 31, 2024
The Call for International Intervention
Ethan Hee-Seok Shin of the TWJG highlighted the pressing need for global accountability, stating plans for a forthcoming report to pressure North Korea. This call to international action is crucial as defectors are starkly viewed as traitors by the North Korean regime, facing dire consequences like capital punishment.
Support exists under South Korea’s North Korean Refugees Protection and Settlement Support Act, in conjunction with international law, offering refuge to escapees. Nonetheless, the interpretations and executions of the North Korean Constitution, especially regarding speech and fair trials, fall short, demonstrating the gap between proclaimed rights and reality.
