U.N. Human Rights Experts "Suspected Execution of 2 Forced North Korean Women"

U.N. human rights experts have sent a letter to the North demanding an explanation, saying they have obtained information that two North Korean women forced to defect from China have been executed, according to U.S. Radio Free Asia and RFA.

The broadcaster said North Korean authorities held an open trial in Cheongjin, North Hamgyong Province, in August last year, and sentenced and executed women in their 40s and 30s on charges of selling North Korean defectors in China to South Korea and operating adult entertainment facilities.

The two women were some of the North Korean defectors forcibly repatriated by China in October 2023, and nine others, excluding them, were reportedly sentenced to life in prison.

U.N. human rights experts said in the letter that their repatriation was a violation of the principle of prohibiting forced repatriation and that they were not guaranteed a fair trial and due process and were punished excessively.