NHRC ON REFUGEE'S CHILDREN STRANDED IN KOREA

[Anchor Lead]

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea says refugees' children must be allowed to enter the country because banning their entry constitutes a violation of their rights. The plea comes after the children of an Angolan family, who had to stay at Incheon International Airport for more than nine months to seek asylum, were seriously traumatized by the experience.

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​The family of Nkuka Lulendo from Angola stayed at Incheon Airport for 287 days after being turned down a refugee status. With the help of human rights groups, the family was finally able to leave the airport late last year and has since been living in this semi-basement flat. However, the children have been seriously traumatized by months of homelessness and are receiving psychological therapy. The stress of around-the-clock exposure to the public took a toll on their mental health.

[Soundbite] BOBETTE(NKUKA LULENDO'S WIFE) : "We ate cereal every day. Before that we ate hamburgers daily. My children suffered from indigestion."

Lulendo's children have been also deprived of their right to attend school like their peers.

[Soundbite] BOBETTE(NKUKA LULENDO'S WIFE) : "It was heartbreaking to see my children suffer. I had never imagined it would happen to them."

The family filed a petition with Korea's human rights commission to request protection of the children's rights. The commission has ruled that their rights were severely violated. It said that banning refugees' children from entering the country runs counter to the Korean Constitution, which guarantees human dignity and basic human rights, as well as to the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child. The commission stressed that refugees must be guaranteed basic treatment as long as their application for a refugee status is appropriate, and that children's rights must be given a priority.

[Soundbite] KIM JIN(LAWYER(HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION ATTORNEY)) : "This incident could be of great help for refugees' children who may arrive at the airport in the future."

The commission has requested that the justice minister revise laws and regulations on children who are denied entry to the country and are subject to repatriation.