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Deportation of North Koreans Suspected in 16 Deaths Raises Questions in South

William Gallo

   SEOUL - Human rights groups, lawyers and former defectors are
   criticizing South Korea's decision to return two North Korean fishermen
   who are suspected of killing 16 of their colleagues and then fleeing to
   the South.

   The two men were captured late last week after their squid fishing boat
   crossed the eastern sea border separating North and South Korea,
   according to Seoul's Unification Ministry. The two confessed that they
   and another man killed the captain and then 15 other crew members.

   South Korea rejected the men's request for defector status on the
   grounds they are "heinous criminals" and returned them to North Korea
   through the Panmunjom border village Thursday.

   The bizarre incident tests South Korea's domestic and international
   legal commitments. The country's constitution in theory recognizes
   North Koreans as South Korean nationals, and Seoul usually accepts
   fleeing North Koreans, pending an investigation into their background.
   But South Korean law also allows authorities wide latitude to reject
   incoming North Korean individuals, for instance, on national security
   grounds.

   Despite the criminal allegations against the North Korean fishermen,
   some defector and human rights groups in Seoul say the men deserved the
   legal protections offered by South Korea, noting it is highly likely
   they will now be executed without a fair trial.

   "The two defectors should be handled under the South Korean legal
   system. We can expect what punishment they will receive in North
   Korea," said a statement from Saejowi, a Seoul-based defector support
   group.

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