UN affirms concern over forced repatriation of North Koreans following criticism

The U.N. human rights office expressed grave concern over the forced repatriation of North Koreans from China and elsewhere after facing criticism from rights groups for its “unacceptable silence” on the issue.
Taking aim at U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk and his office, a dozen rights groups issued a statement Friday saying it was “not too late” for the rights office “to publicly urge China to end the enforced disappearance and forcible repatriation of North Korean escapees” and allow for individual assessments of whether they qualify as refugees.
The groups include families of people who were abducted and sent back to North Korea, North Korean defectors, and the Seoul-based Transitional Justice Working Group which monitors and analyzes North Korea’s human rights record.