9 others were given life in prison on human trafficking charges
North Korea’s recent actions have sparked international concern after two women, Ri and Kang, were executed on August 31 following a public trial in Chongjin, North Korea. According to Jang Se-yul, head of the Seoul-based human rights organization Gyeore’eol Unification Solidarity, the women were charged with assisting other North Koreans in China to escape to South Korea, Radio Free Asia reported.
Ri, 39, and Kang, 43, were among approximately 500 North Koreans forcibly repatriated by China in October 2023. Nine other women received life sentences on similar charges, highlighting the extreme measures taken by the North Korean government to deter defection.
According to Radio Free Asia, a resident of Chongjin reported that two women were subjected to a public trial in a marketplace, attended by hundreds of residents and merchants. The trial, which lasted only an hour, commenced at 11 am and concluded with the execution of the two women by officials from Hamgyong province on the same day.
Notably, these executions are part of a larger pattern of North Korea’s treatment of its citizens who attempt to defect or assist others in defecting. The country has a history of severe punishment for those caught trying to escape or helping others to do so.
Women comprise the majority of North Korean escapees seeking refuge in China. Upon crossing the border, many fall prey to Chinese handlers who exploit their desperation, selling them into servitude. These women are frequently forced into prostitution or coerced into becoming the unofficial wives of Chinese men.
”These two women were executed because they had sent North Korean escapees from China to their enemy country, South Korea. When they first escaped, they were sold to a Chinese adult entertainment business. When other North Korean women working there said they wanted to go to South Korea, they made arrangements to send them there,” Mr Se-yul told RFA Korean.
The international community, including South Korea, has called for China to end these forced repatriations and provide asylum or safe passage to North Koreans fleeing their homeland. However, China maintains that it has a bilateral agreement with Pyongyang requiring the repatriation of North Korean escapees, labelling them “economic migrants.”
Human rights groups have condemned China’s actions, emphasizing that as a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention and the United Nations Convention against Torture, China should not force anyone back who would face persecution or torture. However, China has forcibly returned over 670 North Koreans since 2020, including a large group of 500 in October 2023.
