North Korean defector's fears for sister who she believes will 'die in jail'

30 January 2024 , 22:39

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Kim Kyu-li wept while talking about her lost family

A North Korean defector has given a rare glimpse into the oppressive Hermit Kingdom as she shared fears that her sister may "die in prison".

Kim Kyu-li, who now lives in Morden, south London, managed to escape across the border into China before eventually travelling across the globe to find her new home in the UK. But her younger sister, Kim Cheol-ok, who also escaped into China, had a very different fate. Within days of reaching China, she was sold into marriage by bridal traffickers, and remained in the country for the next 25 years. It wasn't until 2023 that police there arrested Cheol-ok and returned her to North Korea.

According to human rights groups, the number of defectors being deported back to the country they tried so hard to escape from is on the rise, following a mass deportation in October of 500 people sent back in a single day. With a grown up daughter of her own, Cheol-ok had lived a dangerous life, where she was forced to bribe local officials to avoid being sent back. But realising she was at risk, she and her sister - who had connected on social media - made plans for her to travel to Vietnam.

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During the journey, she was seized by Chinese cops, and eventually deported. Kim Kyu-li's main fears comes from knowing exactly what awaits her sister on her return. She told Sky News: "There will be a lot of punishment, no food in the jail, hard work. She doesn't speak Korean anymore, she has no family there, she will die in jail. Twenty-five years she lived there, it is her home now. How could they do that?! Maybe they have a relationship with North Korea, but they shouldn't do that. It's not human, we are not animals. If she goes back to North Korea [she will be treated] like flies, they kill flies."

In North Korea, defectors are reportedly seen like traitors and face brutal punishments, including imprisonment, torture and execution in some cases. However, China has told the UN that there is no verifiable evidence of maltreatment, meaning that the deportations comply with the 1951 Refugee Convention.

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China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Wang Wenbin told Sky: "There is no such thing as a North Korean 'defector' in China. People who come to China illegally for economic reasons are not refugees. They have violated Chinese law and have disrupted the order of China's entry and exit administration. China has always dealt with these people in accordance with the principle of combining domestic law, international law and humanitarianism."

Ryan Fahey