The Escalating Pattern of Forced Returns

Since 2024, Chinese authorities have forcibly repatriated at least 406 North Korean citizens, adding to a disturbing trend that began in 2020. The total number of documented forced returns now stands at a minimum of 1,076 individuals. These returns are occurring despite international laws prohibiting the refoulement – the return of individuals to a country where they face persecution or torture – and raise serious questions about China’s commitment to human rights.

The practice of forcibly returning North Koreans is rooted in a 1986 border protocol, which China maintains treats these individuals as illegal “economic migrants” rather than political refugees. However, this categorization ignores the inherent dangers faced by those who flee North Korea’s totalitarian regime. Defection itself is considered a crime of “treachery against the nation” in North Korea, punishable by death, making returnees particularly vulnerable.

Information regarding these deportations is largely gathered through clandestine networks, notably the reports of Stephen Kim, a source with extensive contacts within both North Korea and China. Human Rights Watch has consistently deemed Kim’s network credible, providing a vital, though unofficial, window into the situation.

A 2014 United Nations Commission of Inquiry report on human rights in North Korea detailed systematic abuses inflicted upon forcibly returned individuals, including torture, sexual violence, forced labor, and inhumane detention. The commission warned that China’s cooperation in these repatriations could be considered complicity in crimes against humanity.

Subsequent reports from UN human rights experts have echoed these concerns. A September 2025 report from the UN Human Rights Office highlighted the consistent pattern of severe human rights violations experienced by repatriated individuals, reiterating the principle of non-refoulement. In November 2024, UN experts expressed concern over reports of executions of women returned to North Korea in October 2023, but received no response from either North Korea or China.

The situation is particularly dire for women and girls. Many North Korean women are trafficked into China, often forced into marriage or sexual exploitation. Those who become pregnant while in China face especially brutal consequences upon return, with reports of forced abortions and infanticide, driven by the North Korean government’s desire to maintain the “purity” of the Korean people.

As of July 2024, over 100 North Korean women were reportedly held in detention centers in southern China, many with children, awaiting repatriation. Authorities reportedly planned to return them to their Chinese husbands ahead of a scheduled visit by Kim Jong Un to Beijing, a move that would further endanger their lives and well-being. At least 28 of these women were subsequently sent back to their husbands in China.

Growing repression within China under President Xi Jinping, including increased surveillance, has made it easier to identify and detain North Korean escapees, exacerbating the problem. Beijing has consistently rejected international calls to end the practice of forced repatriation, explicitly rejecting recommendations to do so during its 2024 Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council.

China’s actions directly contravene its obligations under international law, including the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1984 Convention Against Torture. North Koreans who flee their country are considered refugees *sur place* – individuals who become refugees by the act of leaving, regardless of their initial reasons for doing so.

What responsibility do neighboring countries have to protect those fleeing persecution, even if it strains diplomatic relations? And how can the international community effectively pressure China to uphold its human rights obligations?

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has urged China to recognize the need for international protection for North Korean escapees and to provide access to asylum procedures. However, these calls have largely gone unheeded.

Further information on the human rights situation in North Korea can be found at Human Rights Watch’s North Korea page and Amnesty International’s North Korea page.

Frequently Asked Questions About North Korean Refugees