Appendix F

The following represents a comprehensive list of the names of humanitarian workers and North Korean refugees who have been seized by the Chinese authorities. Given China’s superior cooperation with the UNHCR regarding Indochinese refugees, these arrests, detentions, and possible repatriations, are of grave concern to the international community. A positive step to restore China’s tarnished human rights reputation would be the investigation of the following cases:

These four were arrested outside a restaurant in Beijing. On the day of their arrest, they had arrived from the city of Yanji by the Tumen-Beijing express train.

Mr. Lee Kil-wun (64, from the Onsong district, North Korea, coal-mine administrator)

Mrs. Han Sun-bok (60, wife of Mr. Lee Kil-wun, former high school teacher, from the same district)

Mr. Lee Song-min (31, son of Mr. Lee and Mrs. Han, worker, from the same district)

Seized in Yantai City, Shandong Province on January 18, 2003
Mr. Choi Yong Fun, South Korean humanitarian aid worker
Mr. Park Myong Ho , a Korean Chinese,
Ko Chong Mi (Female, born September 23, 1960 in Japan Osaka Ikunoku Tennoji)
Lee Yu Son (Female, born September 21, 1982 in DPRK Pyon an Puk Do)
Kim Son Hee (Female born September 1, 1961in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Kil Ju Gun Yong Buk Ku)
Pee Okk Ju (Female born February 11, 1988 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do)
Kim Myong Chol (Male born January 28, 1965 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Rajing Jang Pyong Dong)
Chu Hun Kuk (Male born December 29, 1956 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Kil Ju Gun Yong Buk Ku)
Kim Yong Ho (Male born December 17, 1969 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Fe Ryong CityYok Chon Dong)

Kim Kum Ok (Female born March 28, 1960 in DPRK Han Gyong Nam Do Ham Hung Song Chon

Kang Yok John Dong 15)
Sin Younghee (Female born July 14, 1986 in Han Gyong Puk Do Seppyor Gun An Won Li 39)
Choun Hyang Hwa (Female born July 10, 1983 in DPRK Han Gyong Nam Do Ham Hung Song Chon

Kang Yok John Dong 15)
Kim Un Kum (Female born June 25, 1931 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Myon Chon Kun)
Be Kwang Myong (Male born January 1, 1986 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Chong Jin Chong am 1-3)
Park Ran Hee (Female born January 17, 1964 in DPRK Han Gyong Nam Do Ham Hung Yong Song Gu Yoku)
Lee Kyong Su (Male born Feb. 18, 1968 in DPRK Yang Kang Do He San city)
Lee Chol Ho (Male born Aug. 28, 1967 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Chong Jin City Chong Jin)
Lee Chol Nam (Male born Apr. 26, 1969 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Chong Jin City Chong Jin)
YangYong Ho (Male born March 30, 1961 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do mu san gun)
Yang Gum Soon (Female born Dec. 2, 1987 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do mu san gun)
JangYong Chol (Male born Apr. 20, 1955 in DPRK Han Gyong Puk Do Chong Jin City Chong Jin)
Kim Young Kwang (Male, 20 years old born in DPRK)
Sok Ze Hyon (Male born Jan. 19, 1970 in Seoul Korea deku city Won De dong 271)

Also arrested in Yantai on January 18, 2003, these three received verdicts on May 22, 2003.

Park Yong-chol (NK national; Sentenced to 2-year imprisonment and a fine of 5,000 RMB)

Park Yong-ho (Chinese version of “Piao LONGGAO;” Korean Chinese national; Sentenced to 3-year imprisonment

Kim Song-man (Chinese vesion of “Jin CHENGWAN;” Korean Chinese national; Sentenced to 1-year imprisonment

Seized at the Vietnam/China border on November 13, 2002
These seventeen refugees were seized by Vietnamese border guards and turned over to Chinese authorities. They are believed to currently be in Pingshang, Nanying City, Guangxi Province, China.
Kim, Ok-ryun (female, 38)
Kim, Myung-hee (female, 33)
Choi, Kil-sook (female, 62)
Kim, Kum-dan (female, 67)
Hwa Jung (28)
Lee, Sung-yeol (male, 20)
Kim, Chul-ho (male, 44)
Lee, Hwa-jun (male, 35)
Park, Yoon-sang (male, 54)
Cho, Kyung-sook (female, 29)
Cho, Sung-sook (26)
Kwak, Myung-neo (male, 35)
Yoon, Seo-young (female, 24)
Chun, Chang-sup (male, 42)
Hwang, Tae-Wook (male, 9)
Oh, Song-Wol (4 year old child)
Lee, Dae-ho (7 month old baby)

Seized at the German School in Beijing on October 31, 2002
Joo, Seung-hee (female, 41, Hamkyung Bukdo)
Han, Mee Kyung (female, 17, daughter of Joo Seung-hee)
Lee, Sun-hee (female, 39, Hamkyung Bukdo)
Kim, Ok-byul (female, 14, daughter of Lee Sun-hee)
Kim, Kwang-soo (male, 16, son of Lee Sun-hee)

Seized in Dalian on October 30, 2002
Kim, Gun Nam (male)

Seized at the Ecuadorian Embassy in Beijing on September 2, 2002
Han, Song-hwa (female, 45)
Cho, Seong-hee (female, 16, daughter of Han Song-hwa)
Cho, Hyun-hee (female, 12, daughter of Han Song-hwa)
Kim, Yeon-hee (female, 31)
Cho, Il-hyun (female, 10 months, daughter of Kim Yeon-hee)
Choi, Jin-hee (female, 28)
Chung, Kwon (male, 28)
Cho, Young-ho (male, 20)

Seized in Changchun in Northeast China on August 31, 2002
Kim, Hee-tae, humanitarian worker, was seized along with eight North Korean refugees, who were attempting to leave China.

Seized near the Mongolian border on that same day, August 31, 2002
Yun Kim Shil (female)

Seized at the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Beijing on August 26, 2002
These seven refugees attempted to apply for asylum at the Chinese Foreign Ministry:
Kim, Jae-gon (male, 60)
Kim, Jong-nam (male, 36)
Kim, Mi-young (female, 37)
Jo Song-hye (female, 27)
An, Choi-su (male, 40)
Ko, Dae-chang (male, 56)
Kim, Hong (female, 29)

Seized in Yunnan Province near the Laos/Burman/China borders between May 24-26, 2002,
Six North Korean defectors of which three names are known to us:
Lee, Song-yong (boy, 3) (note his mother, Park Sun, hi (female, 31), defected successfully to South Korea in 2000)
Lee, Hong-gang (male, 48)
Kim, Mi-hwa (female, 30)

Seized while attempting to reach Thailand on May 10, 2002:
Kim, Chul Soo (male, 63)
Kim's wife (female, 60)
Kim's daughter (female, 30)
Choi, Soon Kum (female, 59)
Kim, Myung-Wol (female, 45)
Pack, Nam Gil (male, 18)
Park, Myung-Chul (male, 45)
Han, Young-Ae (female, 45)
Han's husband (male, 47)
Eun, Shim (female, 10)
Eun Shim's brother (male, 14)

Seized in Yanbian on May 9, 2002
Rev. John Daniel Choi (American citizen who had set up an orphanage to care for North Korean refugee children) Fourteen refugees he was helping were seized on the say day Choi was taken by Chinese authorities.

Seized in Yenji, China on April 12, 2002:
Rev. Choi, Bong-il (54), humanitarian worker
Shin Chul (24) (refugee being helped by Rev. Choi)
Choi, Sung-gil (23) (refugee being helped by Rev. Choi)

Seized near Mongolia border, December 29-30, 2001
Seized near the border town of Dongchi in northeasterm Inner Mongolia trying to cross the China/Mongolia border on December 29/early December 30, 2001 (seized when Pastor Chun Ki Won was arrested). (Two with U.S. relatives were allowed to go to Seoul). Last report was they were being held in Manchu-Ri Prison in China:
Roh, Myung-ok (female, 38, wife of a SK citizen, Chung, Jae-song)
Chung (Jung), Yoon (Eun)-mee (female, 10, daughter of No Myung-ok)
Chung (Jung), Yoon(Eun)-chul (male, 8, son of No Myung-ok)
Kim, Kwang-il (male, 32)
Kim, Chul-nam (male, son of Kim Kwang-il)
Kim, Ji-sung (male)
Nam, Choon-mee (female, wife of Kim Ji-sung)

Seized at their "safe-house" with their son in Dalian by Chinese police on September 16, 2000
Han, Won-chae (male, 60)
Shin, Keum-hyun (female, 58)
Their son, Han, Sin-hyuk, successfully defected to South Korea.

Seized by North Korean security agents in China on January 17, 2000

Rev. Kim, Dong-sik (Rev. Kim is a citizen of South Korea but also has a green card from the USA); he is believed o have been abducted to North Korea:

Seized by Chinese police in Jian, Liaoning Province on August 6, 1997
Li, Song-Nam (51) ,

Seized at the Shanghai International Airport on February 4, 1997
Kim, Eun-Chol (male, 35); His parents (Jae-Won Kim and his wife live in South Korea and it is believed he was sent back to North Korea)

Jubilee Campaign is gravely concerned about the arrest and imprisonment of several South Korean nationals in China. The prisoners include Yong-hun Choi, a humanitarian aid worker, and Jae-hyun Seok, a photojournalist, arrested last January in conjunction with the "Yantai Boat People Incident." Also included is Kim Hee-tae, an aid worker, who was internally relocating North Korean refugees and Reverend Bong-il Choi, who was helping North Korean refugees flee into neighboring Mongolia. Petitions have been filed with the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention for Mr. Yong-hun Choi and Mr. Jae-hyun Seok. Petitions for Mr. Kim Hee-tae and Rev. Bong-il Choi are forthcoming.

Yong-hun Choi

Mr. Choi was sentenced on May 22, 2003 to five years in prison on the charge of organizing illegal border crossings stemming from his assistance to North Koreans in fleeing China to Japan. Mr. Choi was arrested on January 19, 2003 in what has become internationally labeled as the “Yantai Boat People Incident.”

Mr. Choi was helping North Koreans flee China to Japan and ultimately to South Korea in fishing boats from the Zhifu-ku Beizao Pier in Yantai City, Shandong Province when he was arrested.

Mr. Choi’s arrest and trial included serious violations of international standards of due process. First, Mr. Choi was detained and interrogated without legal counsel and advice. He was not informed about his right to obtain counsel, and did not have an opportunity to choose a defense attorney for himself. Furthermore, he was only given permission to communicate with his wife on three different occasions via telephone before the April 22, 2003 trial. In the third conversation, Mr. Choi said the police had urged him to call his wife and request that she send money for the court to appoint a defense attorney. His wife hand delivered the money on April 21 to the interpreter at the court. After that, Mr. Choi has been prohibited from contacting his wife again. Nothing is known about the actual use of the money handed to the interpreter at the direction of Chinese police.

Second, the Chinese government assigned one female Han Chinese interpreter to interpret for both the prosecution and the defense, interpreting Chinese into Korean and vice versa. No defendant can rely on an interpreter employed by and working for those seeking to prosecute him.

The interpreter misinterpreted important words into Korean, such as “nationality” and “international.” Moreover, she was unable to differentiate between past and present tenses and between passive and active voices of the Korean language. At one point in the trial when Mr. Choi was asked whether any Westerners participated in the planning of the incident, the interpreter was unable to translate the word “Westerner” into Korean. In fact, it appeared that she did not even understand the meaning of the word. The defendant was thereby deprived of understanding and comprehending the accusations against him or in any way preparing a defense to the accusations and charges lodged against him.

The defense attorney assigned by the Chinese authorities to Mr. Choi was not retained nor approved by either Mr. Choi or his family. Mr. Choi was not allowed an attorney of his own choosing. It appears that the court appointed Mr. Choi’s attorney on April 21 when Mrs. Kim hand delivered the money to the court. Furthermore, Mr. Choi and his family were given no opportunities to consult with the attorney before the April 22 trial.

The defense attorney appointed by the court did not understand the Korean language, precluding him from identifying misinterpretations and severely restricting communications between Mr. Choi and the attorney.

New defense counsel was retained by Mr. Choi’s wife and an appeal was filed on June 2. Although the appeal hearing generally occurs within a month after the appeal is filed, Mr. Choi’s hearing date has been delayed. It was recently reported that a final hearing was scheduled for August 20, however, the hearing was postponed and the new date has not been announced.

Furthermore, Mr. Choi has serious health problems, which include hypertension, diabetes, and asthma. Additionally, he had a diverticulectomy surgery with an apoendectomy in his abdomen on November 29, 1999, after being diagnosed with acute diverticulitis[1] by The Catholic University of Korea Holy Family Hospital in South Korea.

Moreover, Mr. Choi stated to his wife briefly at the April 22 trial that his diet while in detention has been extremely poor. During the same conversation, Mr. Choi also said that the detention officials stated that unless he paid money, he would continue to be fed a poor diet. Mrs. Kim sent 500 CNY to the detention center on June 11. Mrs. Kim made several attempts to give Mr. Choi his medications at trial. She also requested that the officials relay the medications to Mr. Choi and she provided the prescriptions to the detention office. Nevertheless, the officials have refused to give Mr. Choi his medications.

During the second week of July 2003, the defense attorney met with Mr. Choi briefly. The attorney reported that Mr. Choi’s health was not good. Although he was receiving some medications, he was not receiving the correct prescribed medicines.

To this day, Mr. Choi’s wife has been prohibited from meeting with her husband.

Yet, on May 22, 2003, Mr. Seok was convicted of organizing illegal border crossings and was given a two year prison sentence. Mr. Seok’s trial was highly prejudicial and violated international standards of due process. His arrest and subsequent conviction are an odious affront to freedom of speech and the press.

According to Article 19 of both the Universal Declaration and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, all persons have the right to freedom of expression, which includes the freedom to “seek, receive and impart information and ideas” through various types of media. Mr. Seok is a photojournalist by profession and was present at the incident on January 18, 2003 to document the group of North Koreans fleeing from China to Japan. Ann Cooper, Executive Director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, stated that “[b]y sentencing Jae Hyun Seok, China’s leaders are sending a clear message to all journalists that they are not welcome to report from China on stories of international importance. It is outrageous that China’s leaders consider Seok’s important journalistic work to be a criminal offense.” For China to consider Mr. Seok’s action to be a crime is a gross violation of Article 19.

Furthermore, Mr. Seok’s wife has been prevented from visiting Mr. Seok during his detention.

Mr. Kim Hee-tae, a South Korean national, was arrested on August 13, 2002 in Changchun, Jilin Province, China and was charged under Criminal Code Article 318 for organizing illegal border crossings. Mr. Kim was transporting North Korean defectors from one location to another within China. He was ambushed by Chinese officers on August 13 while guiding North Koreans to Beijing. A trial for Mr. Kim’s was held on April 22, 2003, eight months after his arrest and detention, however, the court did not issue a decision nor set a date on which a verdict would be delivered. Mr. Kim remains detained indefinitely to this day.

Rev. Choi is a South Korean national who aided North Koreans in China by providing them with shelter, food and clothing and taught them about the Bible. In April 2002, Rev. Choi was arrested and charged with organizing illegal border crossings for helping North Koreans cross the China/Mongolia border. It was the first time he had participated in such an operation.

A trial was held for Rev. Choi on December 5, 2002. His wife was able to attend the trial which was open to the public. The trial lasted two and a half hours. The court did not render a verdict nor did it set a date on which the verdict will be delivered. Rev. Choi has remained in detention indefinitely since his arrest.

Chinese security officers in Shanghai on August 8, 2003 arrested two (2) members of a Japanese NGO, along with nine (9) North Korean refugees they were allegedly attempting to help escape from China. Also arrested were two (2) South Korean journalists whom the authorities charge with accompanying the group to document the event.

Among the two (2) Japanese NGO members were Professor Fumiaki Yamada, head of the Japanese NGO, The Society to Help Returnees to North Korea (HRNK) and HRNK staff member Mr. Kim Kijyu, a South Korean national.

Shanghai security authorities on August 8 are reported to have arrested the group for allegedly organizing an illegal entry or illegal border crossing under Criminal Code 318.

The incident came to light when it was reported by the Foreign Ministry of Japan, which lodged an inquiry with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China.

Reports say that the nine North Korean refugees arrested in this incident are:

          2 males in their 30s: 2nd generation returnees
          1 female in her 30s: 2nd generation returnee
          1 female in her 30s: North Korean national
          2 children: (ages 7 and 1)
          1 female in her 20s: North Korean national
          2 returnees in their 40s

The group had assembled in Shanghai on August 5, allegedly planning to dash into a facility affiliated with the Japanese consulate there, to seek asylum in the final destination of South Korea.

On August 28, China released Professor Fumiaki Yamada (Japanese) and Mr. Kim Gi-ju (South Korean), members of HRNK, along with the two South Korean journalists. They were released after being detained in Shanghai for about three (3) weeks.

Although those arrested on August 8 were charged under the same criminal code section as Mr. Yong-hun Choi, Mr. Jae-hyun Seok, Mr. Hee-tae Kim, and Rev. Bong-il Choi, why is it that they were released only after three (3) weeks of detention? Why is it that China treats persons charged with the same crime differently?

Furthermore, the fate of the nine (9) North Korean defectors is currently unknown. If they are refouled back to North Korea, it is certain that they will face imprisonment and/or execution without a fair and impartial trial for what North Korea considers a crime, leaving the country. Those who associate with NGOs and Christians are reported to be treated more harshly than others. Under the 1951 Convention on Refugee Status and the 1967 Protocol, of which China is a signatory nation, the defectors should be granted refugee status and allowed safe passage to South Korea.

[1] “Many people have small pouches in their colons that bulge outward through weak spots, like an inner tube that pokes through weak places in a tire. Each pouch is called a diverticulum. Pouches (plural) are called diverticula. The condition of having diverticula is called diverticulosis . . . When the pouches become infected or inflamed, the condition is called diverticulitis. This happens in 10 to 25 percent of people with diverticulosis. Diverticulosis and diverticulitis are also called diverticular disease.” National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse, at http://www.niddk.nih.gov/health/digest/pubs/divert/divert.htm.

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