REPATRIATED NORTH KOREANS' FATE HIGHLIGHTS ROKG'S

C O N F I D E N T I A L SEOUL 000327

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/19/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR KS KN
SUBJECT: REPATRIATED NORTH KOREANS' FATE HIGHLIGHTS ROKG'S
FAILURE ON HUMAN RIGHTS

Classified By: POL Joseph Y. Yun. Reasons 1.4 (b,d).


1. (SBU) Summary: On February 18, the Grand National Party
(GNP) called for an inquiry into whether 22 North Korean's
were sent home against their will following unconfirmed
reports that they were executed upon repatriation. The
National Intelligence Service (NIS) has said publicly that
the North Koreans wanted to go home, but activists claim that
there was insufficient time between the interdiction of the
vessels and the repatriation to accurately determine the
individuals' motives. Regardless, the incident could boost
support for incoming President Lee Myung-bak's promises to
take a harder line on North Korea and emphasize the regime's
abysmal human rights record. End Summary.

--------------
The Incident
--------------


2. (U) On February 15, South Korean authorities spotted 22
North Koreans - eight men and 14 women -- in two vessels off
South Korea's Yeonpyeong islands. Press reports quote an
unnamed official who said the boats were swept by currents
into South Korean waters as they were going to gather clams.
North Korean fishermen have often violated the sea border by
accident and are usually sent back immediately. This group,
however, was picked up by the South Korean Navy for
questioning because of the group's size and because there
were so many women. The ROK Navy and thQS rQtedly
questioned the group and, finding they had no intention of
defecting, responded to the North's request for rescue and
repatriation. The group was sent back to North Korea via
Panmunjom 14 hours after being picked up.

--------------
The Controversy
--------------


3. (U) On February 17, Yonhap News, a Korean wire service,
reported that a North Korean security service had executed
all 22 individuals, including three teenagers. The reports
prompted the GNP to call for an inquiry into the NIS's
actions. NIS officials acknowledged the possibility that the
group was executed because of their unauthorized fishing.
Officials said the North Koreans boarded the boats illegally
while monitoring was lax during the Lunar New Year holidays.


4. (U) Activists claim that there was not enough time
between when the North Koreans were picked up and when they
were repatriated for thorough questioning about their
intentions. It is widely accepted that North Korean
refugees, with their experience of living under repression in
the communist country, never say they are defecting unless
they are questioned individually in case at least one person
in their group returns home and becomes an informant.
Additionally, noting North Korean rules prohibiting family
members from fishing together, government critics have said
the fact that 13 of the group were related makes it likely
that their true intention was to defect.

--------------
History
--------------


5. (U) Defections by sea are rare, but by no means
unprecedented. Four North Koreans claimed asylum after their
wooden vessel drifted onto Yeonpyeong Island in May last
year, following the defection of five North Koreans drifting
on a small vessel in 2006.

--------------
NGO Viewpoint
--------------


6. (SBU) Joanna Hakmin Kim, of Citizen's Alliance for North
Korean Human Rights, told poloff that while there was no way
to confirm whther the North Koreans had been executed, the
fact that possible refugees had been turned around was
regretful and she and her group would continue to protest the
ROKG's actions. According to Ms. Kim, few defectors come to
South Korea via the sea and one reason for this was the South
Korean coast guard was quite strict and often turned back

those who were clearly attempting to defect.

--------------
Comment
--------------


7. (C) The timing of these reports cast further dispersions
on Roh Moo-hyun's policies toward the North, and will
probably fuel efforts to draw more attention to the human
rights situation, an issue many -- including Lee Myung-bak --
feel the ROKG has largely ignored. For its part, the
incoming administration has been notably quiet on the fate of
the 22 North Koreans, seemingly preferring to leave the
debate to the National Assembly. The controversy will likely
fade more quickly than it should; North Korea was not much of
an issue in the presidential elections and will probably not
help candidates make significant gains in the April National
Assembly elections. For the South Korean public, however,
the incident is one last blemish on Roh Moo-hyun's tenure and
his legacy of engagement with North Korea.
VERSHBOW