North Korea's decade-long detention of our citizens... Ministry of Unification urges repatriation (CG) [Provided by Yonhap News TV]

Missionary families who have been long-term detainees in North Korea have urged the government and the international community to pay attention to their release.

At an international conference held at Yonsei University in Seodaemun-gu on the 21st, co-hosted by the North Korean Detainees' Families Association, the Transitional Justice Working Group, and the Yonsei University Institute of East and West Studies, under the theme "Three Korean Missionaries Detained in North Korea - Bring Them Home!", methods for the rescue of missionaries Kim Jeong-wook, Kim Guk-gi, and Choi Chun-gil were discussed.

Choi Jin-young, the founding representative of the North Korean Detainees' Families Association and son of missionary Choi Chun-gil, stated, "My father's return home is not just about healing the long-standing pain of one family, but also about proving to the world that universal human rights and justice, which humanity must uphold, are still alive on this earth."

Choi appealed to the government and the international community, saying, "Now, beyond mere concerns, please make practical and concrete diplomatic efforts to ensure that these individuals can safely return to the embrace of their families."

Missionary Kim Hak-song, a Korean-American who was detained in North Korea and released in 2018, said, "I am always praying for the release of the three missionaries who were arrested before me and are still detained. The governments of South Korea and the United States, and the international community must work together to resolve this issue."

In a video congratulatory address, Riley Barnes, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL), stated, "The United States demands the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners, including six South Koreans unjustly detained and those detained for religious activities."

Representatives from international human rights organizations, including Gabriela Citroni, Chair of the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, also participated in the conference.

Missionary Kim Jeong-wook was arrested by North Korean authorities in 2013, and missionaries Kim Guk-gi and Choi Chun-gil have been detained in North Korea since 2014, respectively. North Korea has not allowed any consular assistance for them, leaving their families unaware of their well-being or even their survival.

The North Korean Detainees' Families Association is an organization founded last month by Kim Jeong-sam, the elder brother of missionary Kim Jeong-wook, and Choi Jin-young, the son of missionary Choi Chun-gil. This international conference is the association's first official activity since its establishment.