Most North Koreans escape by crossing the Tumen and Yalu Rivers along the northern border between North Korea and China. However, China does not recognize them as refugees, treating them instead as illegal economic migrants. As a result, North Korean refugees receive no legal protection. Many—especially women and children—fall victim to human trafficking or are exposed to various crimes, forced to live in desperate conditions. Even now, countless refugees are being arrested and forcibly repatriated to North Korea, where they face imprisonment and torture, or they struggle with fear and hardship in China under the constant threat of deportation.
Since its founding in 1996, Citizens’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights (NKHR) has made refugee relief and rescue a core mission. We provide shelter to displaced North Koreans, guide them safely through third countries such as those in Southeast Asia to reach South Korea, and deliver essential humanitarian aid—including food, medicine, and clothing—to those hiding in China. Priority is always given to rescuing the most vulnerable: women, children, and those whose lives would be at risk if repatriated.
To promote the human rights of North Korean refugees, NKHR also conducts monitoring. In particular, we raise awareness of refugees at risk of repatriation or life-threatening danger by informing domestic and international media, and we actively call for intervention from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), foreign governments, and the South Korean government.
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- “I was sold five times.”
- “There is no hope in life.”
- “Please save us!”
- “Please help me study.”
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Until now, NKHR has responded to urgent pleas for help by raising funds whenever possible to support North Korean refugees. However, considering the gravity of the human rights violations they face and the intensified crackdowns by North Korean and Chinese security forces, it became clear that more systematic and organized assistance was needed to ensure that refugees could live with dignity.
In January 2010, NKHR launched the Refugee Relief Task Force and began the Hope Sharing Project—a campaign through which one South Korean citizen could help save the life of one North Korean refugee.
The calls for help are often dramatic and desperate.
We invite you to join us in this project.
- 구호기금 계좌
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・ 우리은행 142-097009-01-201
・ 국민은행 533301-01-050592
예금주 : 북한인권시민연합