Ministry shifts stance on deportation of North Korean fishermen

A North Korean fisherman resists South Korean officials' attempt to hand him over to North Korean officials at the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom, in this Nov. 7, 2019, file photo. Courtesy of Ministry of Unification

New revelation suggests they were sincere about defecting, unlike previous claims

By Jung Min-ho

The Ministry of Unification has abandoned its previous position on the repatriation of two North Korean fishermen, whom it said were "not sincere" about defecting to South Korea in 2019 ― a chief justification for the controversial decision.

Speaking to The Korea Times, Tuesday, a ministry official reconfirmed its shift in stance. But while the Coast Guard apologized for reversing its investigation results involving North Korea under the previous administration, the official said the ministry, as of now, has no plans to issue an apology.

The Moon Jae-in administration said in 2019 that the South Korean government was not obligated to accept the defectors, because they murdered 16 fellow fishermen during their escape to South Korea across the Northern Limit Line, or the de facto maritime border separating the two Koreas.

At Monday's press briefing, Cho Joong-hoon, a spokesman for the ministry, said the decision was "obviously flawed," considering the fate the fishermen faced if they were sent back, reversing its position three years ago.

He also said the ministry received documents from the fishermen who, in their own words, asked for protection ― further evidence against the claim questioning their intentions.

Cho Joong-hoon, spokesman for the Ministry of Unification, speaks during a press briefing at the government complex in Seoul, Monday. Newsis

The new development signals the need for a thorough investigation into the case.

On Nov. 2, 2019, South Korea's Navy captured the men in waters off the country's east coast. After only three days of investigation, authorities under the Moon government concluded that the fishermen were "criminals on the run" and sent them back to the North on Nov. 7. Their fishing boat was returned a day later. It was the first time North Korean defectors had been repatriated against their will.

The grounds for the accusation of murder and their insincere intentions to defect were based on their "confessions" of conspiring with a third person to kill 16 people on the boat before arriving in South Korea. No journalists were allowed to confirm the confessions independently. There was no due process of law, which has left many questioning the credibility of the claims.

The Database Center for North Korean Human Rights, a nongovernmental organization that monitors human rights violations in the North, filed complaints with the prosecution against 11 high-ranking officials, including former national spy agency chief Suh Hoon, for abuse of power among other allegations surrounding the deportation decision.

"The decision to give up judicial rights for them (citizens, according to the Constitution) was an example of a human rights violation," said Yoon Seung-hyun, the organization's director.

Suh, who was the head of the National Intelligence Service from June 2017 to July 2020 before taking the top post at the National Security Office in July 2020, is under suspicion of abusing his authority to stop the investigation into the fishermen.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office recently expanded its investigation team dedicated to misconduct cases involving North Korea under the Moon administration.

Meanwhile, the governing People Power Party has launched a task force to conduct its own investigation into such security issues during his five-year term.

"The Moon administration was a friend of the Kim Jong-un regime," Rep, Sung Il-jong said at the National Assembly in Seoul. "We should find out what the previous administration did to protect our citizens, (including) how the citizens from the North were sent back."

Investigators are also looking into another incident, in which a fisheries official was killed by the North Korean military in 2020.

Last month, the Coast Guard announced there was not sufficient evidence that the official was attempting to defect to the North, reversing its previous stance and apologizing to the bereaved family. On June 24, top officials, including Commissioner General Jeong Bong-hun, offered to resign in order to take responsibility for it.