Category Archives: China
Rumors – China May Recognize Some NK Refugees
Expectations High, but Will Plan Be Implemented?
Rumors filtering out of China recently suggest that the Chinese government may begin granting refugee status to some North Korean defectors. The Chinese government has so far stuck to its official position that there are no North Korean refugees in China, that North Korean defectors have entered China illegally, and that their stay in China is illegal.
Recommendations for the Obama Administration
When the president of one of most influential American NGOs having strong ties with the US government visited Japan in early March, LFNKR directors met with him to discuss the North Korean refugees.
We submitted the following recommendations on the approach to China, and requested that he strongly urge the Obama Administration to adopt the recommendations in establishing its approach to China.
Seminar on Refugees & Human Rights to Be Held in Tokyo
Agenda for Tokyo Seminar
| 13:00 | Registration “North Korean Children Beyond the Border” a documentary film (20minutes) to be played continuously as people enter… |
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| 13:30 | Welcoming Remarks Hiroshi Kato, Secretariat Director of Life Funds for North Korean Refugees (LFNKR) |
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| 14:00 | State of Human Rights in Asia Kanae Doi Tokyo Director of Human Rights Watch |
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| 14:20 | Human Trafficking Forum Stories from the victims Opening remarks – Introduction Testimony from victims Participants Q & A |
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| 15:20 | Presentation Trafficked North Korean women and their Children in China Kate Nielsen Director of International Relations, LFNKR |
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| 15:40 | Presentation The invisible trafficking to China from Kachin State in Myanmar Shirley Seng Director of Kachin Women’s Association in Thailand |
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| 16:00 | Presentation Trafficking of North Koreans in China Lin Fei Representative of Overseas Chinese Democracy Coalition Japan |
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| 16:20 | Presentation Reception condition of women and children asylum seekers in Japan Eri Ishikawa Secretary general of Japan Association for Refugees |
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| 16:40 | Presentation Resettlement of North Korean Women and children in Japan Kotaro Miura Representative of Society to Help Returnees to North Korea |
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| 17:00 | Panel Discussion Refugees and Human Rights in Asia |
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| 17:40 | Closing Remarks |
Letter Sent to US Secretary of State
LFNKR has submitted, through the American Embassy in Tokyo, the following letter to the new US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton who is visiting Japan from Feb. 16, 2009:
To: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
From: Life Funds for North Korean Refugees (NPO), Tokyo, Japan
Re: Human Rights in North Korea
February 10, 2009
Dear Secretary Clinton,
May we congratulate you on your appointment to the post of Secretary of State, a position which is more vital in today’s world than ever before. And we welcome your visit to Japan and hope that your discussions with the Japanese government are fruitful.
Tokyo Bar Association Awards Human Rights Prize to LFNKR
Kato’s Speech Text
Honored members of the human rights awards screening committee of the Tokyo Bar Association, and ladies and gentlemen gathered here today, I would like to express profound thanks to the esteemed Tokyo Bar Association for presenting the human rights awards for 2008. We at Life Funds for North Korean Refugees are deeply honored to receive your award this year.
NK Defector Escapes China after 14 Years
Mother Was Japanese
The following is the true story of a daughter born in North Korea to an ethnic Korean father from Japan and a Japanese mother. Her parents had married in Japan, then moved to North Korea where the daughter was born. Neither the Japanese mother nor her daughter ever reached Japan. Would things have been different if they were Labor Party members?
Update on NK-China Border Situation
Pass Permit Issuance Suspended in NK
In April, the North Korean government stopped issuing pass permits for North Koreans to enter China. Because of this, many North Koreans who have entered China, seem to be staying there even after their pass permits expire. This means that they are now illegal immigrants – defectors – and if arrested, they will be repatriated. As a matter of fact, according to a local LFNKR staff member in China, many North Korean defectors have already been arrested and sent back.
Follow-up Visit with Orphans Held Last Year in Laos
World Outcry Freed Them from Custody in Laos
Last year 3 North Korean orphans fleeing China were being held in a jail in Vientiane, Laos. When Kato Hiroshi visited them last year, the boy was sick from the stress of being in jail. At that time, Kato encouraged the three, a boy and two girls, telling them “Don’t worry, I promise to get you out of here soon.”