SANTA ANA, CA (ANS) — The sixth annual World Refugee Day is today (June 20, 2006). The United Nations unanimously adopted a resolution in 2000 to remember refugees on a special day each year. There are estimated 15 million refugees and 5 million other displaced people around the world.
Thousands of those refugees are North Koreans hiding in China. North Korea is currently making headlines around the world by reportedly preparing to test launch a long-range missile. Almost forgotten in the missile controversy are the many people – many of those Christians – trying to flee the hermit country of North Korea, ranked the No. 1 persecutor of Christians by Open Doors’ World Watch List for four years in a row.
Due to the horrific conditions under Kim Jong Il’s regime, thousands of North Koreans have fled to neighboring China in an attempt to ultimately reach the safety of South Korea.
However, China is not a safe haven. “Since the beginning of 2005, the Chinese have been picking up and repatriating about 400 to 500 people a week,” says one American aid worker who heads an organization which assists refugees.
Following their repatriation, these North Koreans face either immediate execution for their crime or a life of torture and imprisonment spent within a detention camp.
China is a signatory to the 1951 United Nations Convention on the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. The Refugee Convention dictates that China should grant access to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) to the region between China and North Korea, where most of the refugees are hiding, and also allow the UNHCR a role in determining the status of the refugees. China refuses to allow the UNHRC this access to the border region and to the refugees.
From June 19-25, Open Doors USA on behalf of the North Korea Freedom Coalition is heading a Fax and Pray Campaign To Save North Korean Refugees.
By faxing a letter to Zhou Wenzhong, Chinese Ambassador to the United States, you can protest the systematic and violent repatriation of thousands of North Korean refugees by the Chinese government.
The Fax and Pray Campaign to Save North Korean Refugees coincides with the Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) sponsored International Week of Prayer for North Korea June 19-25.
Fax letters should be sent during the week of June 19-25 for maximum impact. They can be faxed automatically to the Chinese Embassy in Washington by going to the Open Doors USA website at http://members.opendoorsusa.org/nkfaxcampaign. A sample letter is included on the web site.
“This is another way we can advocate on behalf of those who have no status or freedoms, including the freedom of religion,” says Open Doors USA Advocacy Coordinator Lindsay Vessey. “Join North Korea Freedom Coalition members in protesting the inhuman treatment of North Korean refugees. This is especially timely as today is World Refugee Day.”
To learn more about the situation of North Korean refugees in China, visit the North Korea Freedom Coalition website. For information on the International Week of Prayer for North Korea, go to www.prayfornorthkorea.org.
An estimated 200 million Christians worldwide suffer interrogation, arrest and even death for their faith in Christ, with another 200 to 400 million facing discrimination and alienation. Open Doors, celebrating 50 years of service to persecuted Christians, serves and strengthens the Persecuted Church in the world’s most difficult areas through Bible and Christian literature distribution, leadership training and assistance, Christian community development, prayer and presence ministry and advocacy on behalf of suffering believers. To partner with Open Doors, call toll free at 888-5-BIBLE-5 (524-2535) or go to our USA website. To request a complimentary six-month subscription to our monthly newsletter Frontline Faith, call 888-5-BIBLE-5 or register on-line.