• Small vessel with suspected North Korean defectors detained in South Korean waters.
• Four individuals on board believed to have defected.
• Defections made difficult under Kim Jong Un’s rule, intensified by COVID-19 border controls.

A small vessel, suspected to be carrying North Korean defectors, was apprehended by South Korea’s military as it entered South Korean waters, near the Northern Limit Line – the maritime boundary separating the two Koreas.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff believe the four individuals on board have likely defected from North Korea.

Defections have become increasingly challenging since Kim Jong Un assumed power in 2011, with even stricter border controls during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

South Korean authorities have not disclosed further information about the four North Koreans found on the wooden boat.

Typically, would-be defectors are detained and undergo a month-long questioning process to determine their reasons for leaving North Korea before being sent to Hanawon, a resettlement center where they prepare for life in South Korea.

Recently, reports emerged of Beijing forcibly repatriating a substantial number of North Korean defectors.

Human rights groups suggest that up to 600 defectors were sent back, potentially facing imprisonment, sexual violence, or even death upon their return to North Korea.

China does not recognize North Korean defectors as refugees, instead categorizing them as ‘economic migrants’ and consistently returning them, despite appeals from foreign governments and human rights organizations to reconsider this policy.

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