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LFNKR's
Action
Plan 2006-2007
Overview
Last year, a single charter flight from Vietnam carried 460
North Koreans into South Korea. This case had a strong impact
on the international community and spotlighted North Korea’s
human rights problems. It remains to be seen, however, what lessons
it has taught the South Korean government, which fears a similar
incident occurring in Thailand.
Thai police recently detained 175 North Koreans, approximately
twenty of whom have already been qualified as refugees by the
United Nations High Commission for Refugees. The remainder have
either not yet applied for refugee status or are awaiting judgments.
It is unknown how long UNHCR staff will take to review all the
applications and reach decisions. These numbers exclude others
being detained by Thai immigration authorities, said to total
190 persons, none of whom have yet been interviewed by the UNHCR.
In total, nearly 370 people are seeking to enter a third country.
Although one group of defectors is already known to the media,
making the circumstances of the two cases slightly different,
the scale is similar to that of the Vietnam case. In addition,
Laos and Cambodia face similar situations. In order to provide
assistance to these refugees, an international campaign will
be necessary, as well as the strengthening of effective partnerships
with relevant NGOs.
The most pressing problem in North Korea is human rights. The
North Korean government’s refusal, however, to admit the
UNHCR Special Rapporteur has made it extremely difficult to assess
the current human-rights situation there. This climate demands
that we employ any methods available to establish the importance
of human rights and democracy in the Korean peninsula. Suggested
methods include the support of radio broadcasts into North Korea,
the development and expansion of food distribution by NGOs, and
the relaying of messages directly to the North Korean people.
Eight thousand troops have currently been moved
into the Shenyang military area along the Chinese-North Korean
border. If border
controls become tighter, the number of North Koreans leaving
the country is certain to decrease. On the other hand, it is
impossible to completely block off such a long border. Projections
from current numbers suggest that a mere 10, 000 people are likely
to arrive in China. By conservative estimates, 60% of those will
be women. If border security becomes tighter, greater numbers
of these women will fall prey to human traffickers.
LFNKR
Action Plan
| 1. |
North
Korean refugees and humanitarian activities |
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Continue
efforts to assist as many refugees as possible, including
victims of human trafficking. In addition, continue to
work to free the human-rights worker, Choi Yong-hun now
imprisoned in China, and to support his family as well
as approaching the relevant departments to arrange family
visits. |
| 2. |
Protection
of North Korean refugees |
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Build
and maintain shelters as necessary; |
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Ensure the
capacity to provide 500 sets of seasonal (summer / winter)
clothing; |
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Obtain 40
tonnes of rice and other foodstuffs per year, ensuring
two tonnes per month between November 2006 and May 2007
(based on 500g/day each for 133 people); |
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Provide
protection, resettlement funds, and assistance to defectors
wishing to return to North Korea. |
| 3. |
Medical
Assistance |
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Assemble
and deliver 300 home medical first-aid kits; |
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Assist those
requiring hospital stays and/or treatment. |
| 4. |
Education
Sponsorship Plan |
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Although our programs for North Korean orphans (kotchebi)
have ceased, a number of children who fled North Korea
with their parents remain in our care.
Recently, the abandonment of children born of trafficked
North Korean women and Chinese men has become a problem.
Many of these men fail to provide for their families, and
these abandoned children are now reaching school age.
The international community recognizes that in patriarchal
China, these children ought to receive Chinese citizenship,
and that their North Korean mothers, who bear the burden
of raising them, ought to be granted residence status.
However, the Chinese authorities subject these women to
arrest and forcible repatriation; the children not sent
back to North Korea with their mothers are simply abandoned.
Such instances are increasing, leaving us with no option
but to redouble our efforts to protect these children.
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| 5. |
Immigration
and Settlement |
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LFNKR’s highest priority is to assist those people
who have fled North Korea and who can neither return to
North Korea nor remain safely in China, helping them escape
into a third country.
The closure of the Mindan North Korean Refugee Support
Center, which had provided resettlement assistance, is
truly a frustrating development. LFNKR awaits the reopening
of the Center and the resumption of its work.
LFNKR currently faces the need to replace the assistance
that was formerly provided by the Mindan North Korean Refugee
Support Center, by increasing the number of volunteers.
LFNKR will provide Japanese-language education as needed,
in cooperation with other relevant groups.
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| 6. |
Development
and Expansion of International Presence |
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Continue
participating in public hearings and conferences at the
international level, including those sponsored by the European
Parliament and the U.S. Congress; |
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Recruit those
with proficiency in Chinese, Korean, and English languages
in accordance with our needs, and establish a framework
for utilizing these human resources; |
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Invite non-members
to participate in LFNKR events. |
| 7. |
Seminars
and other events |
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Actively
provide opportunities for those working in the field, as
well as defectors, to talk publicly about their experiences
in order to increase awareness; |
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Actively
foster the development of public speakers and personnel
to organize round-table discussions and workshops; |
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Invite non-members
to participate in LFNKR events. |
| 8. |
Funding |
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Continue
the monthly automatic donation system via PayPal; |
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Raise additional
funds for increasing awareness of LFNKR’s activities,
and assist as many defectors as possible. |
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