UNHCR protests Chinese deportation of North Koreans
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) today said it has protested to the Chinese government over the deportation of seven individuals to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), where they could face severe reprisals.
UNHCR last month recognised the seven as refugees, including a 13-year-old boy, after they made their way from North Korea to Russia, across Chinese territory. The refugee agency informed both the Chinese and the Russian governments about its decision to grant them refugee status. It also expressed readiness to resettle the group in a third country. But despite UNHCR's pleas, Russia deported the seven to China on December 30.
UNHCR then appealed to Chinese authorities to refrain from sending them back to North Korea. But on Tuesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry told UNHCR that the refugees had been sent to North Korea. The ministry did not specify when they were deported or how it happened.
"We are gravely concerned by the Chinese decision to deport people whom UNHCR has recognised as refugees under the 1951 Refugee Convention," said High Commissioner Sadako Ogata. She also urged the North Korean authorities to treat the seven deported refugees humanely.
Both China and Russia are signatories of the 1951 Convention - the cornerstone of international refugee law, which clearly bans "refoulement," or forcible return of refugees to areas where they could face danger or persecution.
In a letter sent to the Chinese government on Wednesday, UNHCR protested the violation of the 1951 Convention and fundamental humanitarian principles.
UNHCR has been in regular contact with Chinese authorities over the past two years in an effort to address the issue of North Koreans in China, some of whom definitely meet the criteria for refugee status.
UNHCR strongly urges China to refrain from fresh deportations of North Koreans in the future.
Related news and stories
The Global Compact on Refugees, explained
China can play key role in solving refugee crises - UNHCR chief
Chinese schools offer primary education for urban refugees
UNHCR chief calls on states to respect non-refoulement after North Koreans deported from Laos
UNHCR reaches Kachins sent back from China
UNHCR concerned about welfare of Kachins sent back from China
Your search for « North Koreans refugee » matched 804 results. Displaying page 5 of 90 pages.
-
UNHCR Mid-Year Progress Report 2002 - East Asia and the Pacific Regional Overview
1 Sep 2002 ... The refugee protection regime in Cambodia has also been called into question by recent forced ... In China, over 60 North Koreans entered diplomatic missions in order to seek asylum between mid-March ...... -
National and international responses to the Zimbabwean exodus: implications for the refugee protection regime, Alexander Betts and Esra Kaytaz
1 Jul 2009 ... ... many Haitians, North Koreans, and Iraqis outside of Africa. The problem is that few universally accepted sources of subsidiary protection exist to address the needs of non-refugee survival ...... -
Yearbook of the United Nations 2003: Part 3 Chapter 12 - Refugees and Displaced Persons
2003 ... ... In China, the plight of North Koreans who left their country ille- gally remained a serious concern. ... new thinking on ways of enhancing refugee protection, also tended to encourage ...... -
UNHCR Global Report 2013 - Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regional summary
1 Jun 2014 ... ... | OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS | NORTH AFRICA 146 UNHCR Global Report ... | The pace and scale of refugee flows from Syria into ... donors in the Republic of Korea 22,290 85,496 107,787 Private ...... -
Yearbook of the United Nations 2004: Part 3 Chapter 12 - Refugees and Displaced Persons
2004 ... ... included those in Sri Lanka, the plight of North Korean asylum- seekers in China, and protection and ... anniversary of the 1984 Cartagena Declaration—a regional initiative for refugee welfare. ...... -
UNHCR Global Appeal 2003 - East Asia and the Pacific Regional Overview
1 Dec 2002 ... ... the situation of North Koreans in China, some of whom may be in need of international protection. ... of a cross- ministerial committee to co-ordinate all refugee and related asylum matters. ...... -
UNHCR Statistical Yearbook 2002 - Chapter III: Asylum and Refugee Status Determination
16 Aug 2004 ... North America, Asia and Oceania are situated far apart geographically, most experience similar patterns in asylum and refugee ... In the case of Japan and the Republic of Korea, government data ...... -
Statement to media by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, on the conclusion of his Mission to the People's Republic of China, Beijing, 23 March 2006
23 Mar 2006 ... ... We believe that the large majority of the people that have been crossing the border from North Korea ... associated with the risk of persecution in those areas covered by the 1951 Refugee Convention. ...... -
Tents, helicopters needed in Pakistan's remote north, says UNHCR
13 Oct 2005 ... starting Friday, the UN refugee agency's top official in the ... areas after seeing first-hand the devastation in the north. ... on behalf of the UN for access to ambulances donated by Korea." ......