Choi Yong Hun Not Receiving His Mail in Prison
First Some Good News:
The South Korean aid worker, Kim Hee-tae, was found “not guilty” last month and released after being detained for nearly two years.
He was arrested while leading a group of North Korean defectors to Beijing to submit an official request for refugee status.
NK Prison Camp Book Goes to National Libraries
In late July 2004, LFNKR donated paper-bound copies of the book, Are They Telling The Truth? Brutality Beyond Belief, to the national libraries of several nations in North America, Europe and Asia. The book is a collection of heart-rending accounts from NK prison camp survivors.
Noguchi Back From China Imprisonment
Takayuki Noguchi Arrives in Japan
Noguchi’s face clouds as he tells of the two Japan-born North Korean refugees he tried to save. They were eventually repatriated.
At approximately 9:00 PM on 9th August, Takayuki Noguchi walked through the arrival gate at Narita Airport, after having served an 8-month prison sentence for attempting to assist two Japan-born North Korean refugees.
Int’l Conference on NK Refugees
The First International Planning Conference…
… for the Rescue of North Korean Refugees and Humanitarian Aid Workers hosted by the Japanese and Korean NGO Coalition was held in Tokyo on 18 and 19 July 2004. The two-day Conference, organized by three Japanese NGOs (The Society to Help Returnees to North Korea, RENK, and Life Funds for North Korean Refugees), attracted approximately 100 participants from 9 NGOs and 6 countries.
Japan’s Foreign Ministry Betraying its Citizens?
Ignored Requests to Attend the Nanning Incident Trial
On June 28, 2004, the second (sentencing) phase of Takayuki Noguchi’s trial was convened at the Intermediate People’s Court in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
Noguchi, a member of the Japanese NGO Life Funds For North Korean Refugees, was sentenced to eight months in prison and fined 20,000 yuan (260,000 Japanese yen; US $2,778) under Articles 321 and 61 of the Chinese Domestic Criminal Code, which deals with illegally transporting people with the intent of crossing the Chinese border, and attempting to assist in an illegal border crossing.
Noguchi Sentenced to 8 Months
OFFICIAL STATEMENT
For Press Conference 28 June 2004
The sentencing of Takayuki Noguchi, a member of the Japanese NGO Life Funds for North Korean Refugees (LFNKR), was held At 10:00AM June 28, 2004 at Chong Zuo Intermediate People’s Court in Nanning, Guangxi in China.
Noguchi was charged with one count of illegally transporting people with the intent of crossing the border (Article 321 of the Chinese Domestic Criminal Code) and an additional count of attempting to assist in illegally crossing the border (Article 61). He was sentenced to 8 months in prison and fined 20,000 RMB (about US$2,778). All his personal goods, including 340,000 yen in cash (about US$3,148), a video camera, and a cellular phone were also confiscated.
Boy Spends Life in Hiding, Finally Shot to Death
Chinese Guard Kills NK 17-Year-Old Refugee Right at Mongolian Border
Mid-March 2004 — In his last hiding place. Chol-hun had grown into a fine young man. Three weeks later he was dead.
On April 20 this year, LFNKR received reports that a 20-year-old man was fatally shot when Chinese border guards interrupted an escape attempt by 24 North Korean defectors as they were crossing the border into Mongolia from Manzhouli, China.
Noguchi Gets Rare Sunday Trial
The trial of Takayuki Noguchi, the Japanese aid worker arrested by China last December, was convened at 9:00AM Sunday, May 9, China time in Chong Zuo Intermediate People’s Court. The time seemed deliberately chosen to minimize public attention. Noguchi was technically given an “open trial,” but Chinese authorities avoided announcing the trial date to the media or to LFNKR, though this information had been repeatedly requested.