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| ▲ Members of the National Human Rights Commission hold a plenary meeting at the commission's office in central Seoul on April 13, 2026. (Yonhap) |
human rights watchdog-NK POWs
Human rights watchdog decides to ask foreign ministry to work for transfer of N.K. POWs in Ukraine
By Lee Haye-ah
SEOUL, April 14 (Yonhap) -- The state human rights watchdog said Tuesday it has decided to ask Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and Prime Minister Kim Min-seok to work for the swift transfer of two North Korean soldiers held in Ukraine to South Korea.
The National Human Rights Commission made the decision at a plenary session Monday, with its members agreeing to "state their opinion" rather than "recommend" the measure.
Two North Korean soldiers have been held as prisoners of war in Ukraine since early last year. Both expressed their desire to defect to South Korea in interviews aired by broadcaster MBC last January.
Kim Young-mi, the TV producer who conducted the interviews in Ukraine, attended Monday's meeting and asserted their wish to defect, saying one soldier told her he would kill himself before being sent back to North Korea rather than face severe punishment there.
The case had been discussed during the commission's previous plenary session last month but not been resolved due to opinions that more time should be given to the foreign ministry to come up with its own measures.
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