China’s Repatriation of N. Korean Refugees Another Target of Activists

China’s Repatriation of N. Korean Refugees Another Target of Activists

SEOUL, South Korea -- Onlookers watch as a man tied up in ropes is led down a crowded pedestrian street by a woman holding a plastic assault rifle. Another man holding a megaphone explains that the re-enactment depicts a scene that has become an everyday occurrence in China. A multinational coalition of activists, calling themselves the 4-4-4 Campaign, holds this demonstration each weekend in downtown Seoul.

In Chinese culture, the number 4 symbolizes death. Protester Nam Hyang Soo says the activists chose their name because Beijing's refugee policy is killing North Koreans who try to escape their impoverished homeland.

"The Chinese government is forcibly repatriating North Koreans hiding in China. South Koreans or Americans don't really know what's going on with North Koreans hiding in China," Nam explained.

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