SEOUL– Just before South Korea repatriated two North Korean fishermen in 2019, the justice ministry reviewed its legality and found no legal grounds to send them back to North Korea, the ministry said Wednesday.
The revelation is expected to further fuel criticism that the previous administration of President Moon Jae-in deported the North Koreans even though it knew there was no legal ground to do so after they expressed a desire to defect to South Korea.
The Moon government said at the time that it decided to repatriate the North Koreans because they had admitted to killing 16 fellow crew members and their expression of a desire to defect to the South was deemed insincere.
“Around noon on Nov. 7, 2019, the justice ministry was asked by Cheong Wa Dae to conduct a legality review in connection with the repatriation of the North Korean fishermen,” the ministry said of the then presidential office.
The ministry said it concluded at that time that there were no legal grounds to deport the North Koreans even though they were legally ineligible for government protections as criminals. It also determined it was hard to deport them under the Immigration Act that is only applicable to foreigners.
Despite the findings, the then ministry told Cheong Wa Dae it was unavoidable to deport the North Koreans.
Former National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong, who served under the Moon government, said Sunday the government decided to carry out the deportation after consultations with relevant government ministries.
Source: Yonhap News Agency