On December 1, the nation's civic groups called on...

On December 1, the nation's civic groups called on the Government to bring seven North Korean defectors detained in Russia to South Korea. "The Government should block any move (by Russia) to repatriate them to North Korea because they are certain to face execution if sent back," said Lee Sang-jeen, an official at the Committee to Help North Korean Refugees. He said that, to ensure the defectors' safety, the Government should try to bring the North Koreans to Seoul through close consultations with the Russian Government. Another civic group, the Citizens' Alliance to Help Political Prisoners in North Korea, also sent a letter asking then Russian President Boris Yeltsin not to send the North Korean defectors back to the North.