REPATRIATION PHOTOS OF N. KOREANS

[Anchor Lead]

The unification ministry has disclosed photos of the repatriation of North Korean fishermen back in Nov. 2019. One of the men is shown resisting the authorities' efforts to send him back to the North.

[Pkg]

Two men tied in ropes sit apart from each other. They are North Korean fishermen who were detained in the East Sea in Nov. 2019 and five days later repatriated to the North. They were transferred via the military demarcation line after waiting on the South Korean side of Panmunjeom. One of the men obediently followed the order to return. The other resisted. He also fell down while resisting. In an unprecedented move, the unification ministry disclosed the photos of the repatriation. The ministry says repatriation of North Koreans is always photographed at Panmunjom for documentation. It submitted the images to parliament on Tuesday and disclosed them to the public. The government at the time said a probe had revealed that the fishermen had murdered 16 colleagues.

[Soundbite] Lee Sang-min(Former-Unification Ministry Spokesperson(Nov. 2019)) : "These individuals are not subject to protection under the N. Korean Defectors' Settlement Support Act due to their non-political crimes, such as murder. If they are accepted to S. Korea, they may pose threat to the lives and safety of the public."

Recently the National Intelligence Service indicted its former chief, Suh Hoon, for allegedly closing the probe ahead of time. The ministry also walked back on its previous stance and admitted to wrongdoing during the fishermen's repatriation.

[Soundbite] Cho Joong-hoon(Unification Ministry Spokesperson(July 11)) : "The repatriation of the North Korean fishermen is clearly wrong. They are South Korean citizens according to the constitution and if they are sent back to the North, they are subject to punishment."

A ministry official declined to explain the reason for concluding that the repatriation was wrong, only saying the matter is still being investigated.