North Korea: Refugees

(asked on 29th April 2019) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of China about the arrest and proposed repatriation of seven North Korean escapees, including a nine year-old girl; and whether they have reminded the government of China of its obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and of the requirement to allow those escapees access to an officer from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.


Answered by
 Portrait
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This question was answered on 8th May 2019

We are aware of reports of seven North Koreans currently being detained in China. The British Government actively promotes the implementation of the 1951 UN Refugee Convention which asserts that a refugee should not be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom. We continue to emphasise to China that people fleeing North Korea should be treated as legitimate asylum claimants and should not be returned. We have not raised these particular cases directly with the Chinese Government.

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