§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether and, if so, when, they have raised with the government of China the situation of the estimated 150,000 refugees from North Korea now in China; and whether they will regularly press for access to them by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. [HL639]
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanWe have raised the matter of North Korean refugees in China on a number of occasions with the Chinese Government, most recently during the UK/China Human Rights Dialogue in Beijing in November 2004. We continue to urge China to observe its obligations under the 1951 United Nations Convention on Refugees and to allow the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees access to the China/North Korea border region.