North Korea executes two women who helped people escape to South Korea: Report

Pyongyang, Seoul

North Korea executed two women who were forcibly repatriated from China for helping other North Koreans in China escape to South Korea, a report by Radio Free Asia said on Tuesday (Sep 17) citing a human rights organisation. 

The report said that the women were identified by their surnames: 39-year-old Ri and 43-year-old Kang. Ri and Kang were executed on August 31 following a public trial in North Korea's Chongjin, the publication said citing Jang Se-yul, head of Gyeore’eol Unification Solidarity, a human rights organisation based in Seoul. 

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They were charged with human trafficking. Nine other women were sentenced to life in prison on the same charge.

Two women were sold to adult entertainment business

Jang Se-yul told Radio Free Asia that when Ri and Kang first escaped, they were sold to a Chinese adult entertainment business. "When other North Korean women working there said they wanted to go to South Korea, they made arrangements to send them there," Jang said.

This was the first case of executions since the resumption of forced repatriation of North Korean escapees in China in October 2023. 

Women are major North Korean escapees in China

The report by Radio Free Asia pointed out that women make up the majority of North Korean escapees in China. While in China, such women are often at the mercy of handlers who sell them into servitude, either to work as prostitutes or become the wives of Chinese men. 

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Residents in North Korea confirmed that the trial and execution of Ri and Kang occurred. A resident of the Chinese border city of Hoeryong said that the trial lasted for about an hour, and hundreds of residents and merchants at the marketplace were in attendance.  

(With inputs from agencies)