Critics Claim North Korea Made Up Murder Allegations Against Two Repatriated North Korean Defectors

The deportation of two North Korean defectors by the Moon administration is getting really interesting. Now it is being alleged that they did not murder 16 people and instead it was an accusation made by North Korea that the Moon administration accepted in order to repatriate them:

The Ministry of Unification has raised doubts over murder accusations brought up against two North Korean fishermen who were deported against their will three years ago based on that claim.

A high-ranking official told reporters Thursday that no one other than the judiciary “has the authority to decide whether they are brutal criminals.” The latest move by the ministry is a de facto retraction of the claims it made over the fishermen during the previous Moon Jae-in administration.

Authorities under the Moon administration accused the fishermen of conspiring with a third man to kill their captain and 15 others on a boat before their escape to the South on Nov. 2, 2019. After a three-day investigation, South Korean authorities sent the fishermen back to the North on Nov. 7, claiming that they confessed to the murders.

The high-ranking official said the truth will be uncovered through the prosecution’s ongoing investigation. But he refused to comment further on questions including whether the ministry can disclose information about the 2019 investigation.

The same day, a government official familiar with the matter also questioned the credibility of the murder allegation, claiming that their confessions were factually inconsistent on simple points such as how many people were on the boat and how they killed them. Munhwa Ilbo, a daily newspaper, reported that they were forced to make those confessions through “cruel treatment.”

Citing intelligence reports, the official said the fishermen were executed within several days after being sent back to North Korea.

Rep. Han Ki-ho, head of the ruling People Power Party’s team investigating misconduct involving North Korea during the Moon administration, claimed Wednesday that the murder allegations were an outright lie.

Citing a source living in North Korea’s northeastern city of Kimchaek, Han said the fishermen were brokers who had tried to help 16 people from five households escape to South Korea.

“The two were set to guide the 16 people to South Korea on a fishing vessel, but fled when they realized they were being arrested,” Han said during a meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul.

Han claimed that the North Korean regime fabricated the story and lied to the Moon administration in an attempt to have the fishermen repatriated. He believes South Korean authorities probably knew what really happened, but went ahead with the deportation.

This is not the first time that North has made false accusations of crime against someone to gain what it wants. Rep. Tae Yong-ho, former deputy ambassador of North Korea to Britain, was also falsely accused as a child rapist by the North after defecting to the South in 2016, said Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, the party’s interim head.

“North Korea’s unilateral claims were accepted as fact without verification,” Kweon said during a speech at the Assembly. “The Park Geun-hye administration did not trust such claims by the North. As a result, we have the lawmaker, Tae Yong-ho, at the National Assembly.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but it seems totally foolish to accept the word of the North Koreans on anything relating to defectors. If this allegation is in fact true, I am not sure if anything legally can be done about it, but the people involved in this decision need to be at least publicly brought to light.