Police officials in China’s Hebei Province recently informed the husbands and in-laws of female North Korean defectors who have been arrested for various reasons that the women can only be released if the family members pay a fine and submit a pledge document.
A source in China, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, told Daily NK yesterday that starting in mid-July, Hebei Province police officials “have been calling the Chinese husbands or in-laws of North Korean women under arrest, mostly for minor crimes, telling them that if they pay fines of RMB 3,000 – 5,000 [around USD 420 – 700] and submit a pledge document, they can bring the women home.”
In short, unless their Chinese husbands or in-laws vouch for them and pay a fine to bring them home, the police plan to send the women to a collection point on the China-North Korea border, according to the source.
The source said that the police told the detained women, their husbands and in-laws that if the women steer clear of crime while living with their Chinese families, they will “never” be repatriated back to North Korea, even if they are unable to obtain refugee status or ID cards.
Ultimately, the fates of the defector women depend on choices made by Chinese nationals because it is only their Chinese husbands or in-laws who can pay the fine and submit the pledge document, the source added.
“North Korean defector women who didn’t cause trouble while living in China but were caught trying to head to South Korea were released to families who received the notice from the police after paying fines of RMB 3,000 to 5,000, or even up to RMB 10,000 [around USD 1,400], and submitting a pledge document.”
The pledge document requires signatories to confirm they live with a North Korean defector, stipulates the fine they paid, and includes a pledge that if the woman returns home, the family will wholeheartedly submit to supervision by their local police and help prevent problems from arising in the jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, some of the North Korean women detained by Chinese police face repatriation because their Chinese husbands or in-laws are not bringing them home. The families either have no money or they see no need to pay the fine as they think the women will simply run off again, the source said.
Translated by David Black. Edited by Robert Lauler.
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