A North Korean fisherman resists South Korean officials' attempt to hand him over to North Korean officials at the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjeom, in this Nov. 7, 2019, file photo. Courtesy of Ministry of Unification

'Only judiciary has authority to decide whether they are criminals'

By Jung Min-ho

The Ministry of Unification has raised doubts over murder accusations brought up against two North Korean fishermen who were deported against their will three years ago based on that claim.

A high-ranking official told reporters Thursday that no one other than the judiciary "has the authority to decide whether they are brutal criminals." The latest move by the ministry is a de facto retraction of the claims it made over the fishermen during the previous Moon Jae-in administration.

Authorities under the Moon administration accused the fishermen of conspiring with a third man to kill their captain and 15 others on a boat before their escape to the South on Nov. 2, 2019. After a three-day investigation, South Korean authorities sent the fishermen back to the North on Nov. 7, claiming that they confessed to the murders.

The high-ranking official said the truth will be uncovered through the prosecution's ongoing investigation. But he refused to comment further on questions including whether the ministry can disclose information about the 2019 investigation.

The same day, a government official familiar with the matter also questioned the credibility of the murder allegation, claiming that their confessions were factually inconsistent on simple points such as how many people were on the boat and how they killed them. Munhwa Ilbo, a daily newspaper, reported that they were forced to make those confessions through "cruel treatment."

Citing intelligence reports, the official said the fishermen were executed within several days after being sent back to North Korea.

Rep. Han Ki-ho, head of the ruling People Power Party's team investigating misconduct involving North Korea during the Moon administration, claimed Wednesday that the murder allegations were an outright lie.

Citing a source living in North Korea's northeastern city of Kimchaek, Han said the fishermen were brokers who had tried to help 16 people from five households escape to South Korea.

"The two were set to guide the 16 people to South Korea on a fishing vessel, but fled when they realized they were being arrested," Han said during a meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul.

Han claimed that the North Korean regime fabricated the story and lied to the Moon administration in an attempt to have the fishermen repatriated. He believes South Korean authorities probably knew what really happened, but went ahead with the deportation.

This is not the first time that North has made false accusations of crime against someone to gain what it wants. Rep. Tae Yong-ho, former deputy ambassador of North Korea to Britain, was also falsely accused as a child rapist by the North after defecting to the South in 2016, said Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, the party's interim head.

"North Korea's unilateral claims were accepted as fact without verification," Kweon said during a speech at the Assembly. "The Park Geun-hye administration did not trust such claims by the North. As a result, we have the lawmaker, Tae Yong-ho, at the National Assembly."

Rep. Youn Kun-young of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea insisted during an MBC radio program that no unlawful methods were used to force their confessions. He was a state affairs secretary for Moon (May 2017-January 2020) when the incident occurred.

The Ministry of Unification did not participate in the National Intelligence Service-led probe into the fishermen. But based on the investigation results, the ministry concluded that the fishermen were "not sincere" about defecting to the South.

Since President Yoon Suk-yeol took office in May, the ministry has shifted its stance on the matter and disclosed several photos of the fishermen being handed over to North Korean authorities obviously against their will at the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjeom.

Given the small size of the boat ― 16 meters long, 3.7 meters wide and 17 tons in weight ― many people have questioned the credibility of murder allegations brought up against them. The boat, the most critical piece of evidence, and the clothes of the crew, were disinfected the day they arrived in the South's waters and sent back to the North in the days that followed.