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Controversy over the repatriation of North Korean defectors in 2019 continues.

Three years ago, in the National Assembly stenographer at the time of the incident, it turns out that the controversial issues were discussed even then, but there was also an answer that the fishermen did not know that they would be repatriated to North Korea. 



This is reporter Kang Cheong-wan.



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Eight days after two North Korean defectors were repatriated, the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee.



Opposition lawmakers accuse the government of forcibly repatriating the North Koreans even though the fishermen expressed their intention to defect by hand.



[Lee Jung-hyun / then Liberty Korea Party lawmaker: Have you ever expressed your intention to defect with your own hand, or have you not?]



[Kim Yeon-cheol/then Minister of Unification: Yes.] There were also



pointed out that the legal basis for repatriation to North Korea was insufficient.



It was intended that repatriation could not be carried out under the Refugee Act or the North Korean Refugee Act, which determines whether or not assistance is provided, rather than deportation or deportation.



[Kim Jae-kyung / then Rep. of the Liberty Korea Party: There must be some basis for sending these two people to North Korea, in the law?]



[Kim Yeon-cheol / Minister of Unification: It is difficult to apply the law as it is, but the purpose…

.]



Nevertheless, the government emphasized that there was no problem in the decision to repatriate to North Korea as they were heinous criminals and there was no sincerity in their intention to defect.



[Kim Yeon-cheol / Minister of Unification at the time: When we encountered our navy in the process of descending south, he failed to comply with our navy's control several times over two days and fled...

.]



It was also confirmed during the question-and-answer process that fishermen were not informed of the fact that they were repatriated to North Korea right before the forced repatriation.



[Jung Jin-seok / then a member of the Liberty Korea Party: When did you know that you would be repatriated to North Korea?

Did you know when you arrived at Panmunjom?]



[Kim Yeon-cheol/then Minister of Unification: Yes, I didn’t tell you…

…

]



The Democratic Party also complained about the fact that the Blue House Security Office led the repatriation to the North



.

Shouldn't the Administrative Disposition Agency become the Minister of Unification?]



Former Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong, who was ultimately in charge as the head of the Security Office, said this at a hearing last year.



[Jeong Eui-yong/Former Foreign Minister (Hearing for Minister of Foreign Affairs on 2.5 February 2021): Actually, in my opinion, it would have been better if these people were not captured by the NLL in the first place.]



At the time, when the issue of repatriation to North Korea was the issue, there were also mixed words from the opposition.



[Kim Moo-seong / then a member of the Liberty Korea Party: I think I had a good time.

Can these ugly people be accepted as Korean citizens?]



The controversy surrounding the repatriation of North Korean defectors to North Korea was foretold two years ago and is still ongoing.



(Video coverage: Cho Chun-dong, Kim Nam-seong, video editing: Choi Jin-hwa)



▶ “Summit sacrifice” vs “Security disorder”…

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