US envoy vows to work to prevent forced repatriation of NK defectors

Julie Turner, fourth from left, U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights issues, poses for a group photo during her visit to Hanawon, a government-run resettlement facility for North Korean defectors, in this photo provided by the unification ministry, Feb. 17. Yonhap

The U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights has vowed to work with the international community to prevent the forced repatriation of North Korean defectors, South Korea's unification ministry said Saturday.

Ambassador Julie Turner made the remarks Friday as she met with a group of young defectors who expressed concerns over the fate of North Korean defectors in China who could face harsh punishment in their home country.

Turner also discussed with officials ways to cooperate with the ministry on the issue of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War who reside in the U.S., and visited Hanawon, a resettlement facility for defectors who have entered South Korea.

Turner is visiting South Korea and Japan from this past Monday through next Thursday. Her visit came on the 10th anniversary of the release of the 2014 U.N. Commission of Inquiry report on the North's human rights violations. (Yonhap)