An 18-year-old N. Korean student seeks refuge in Hong Kong

An 18-year-old North Korean student, who took part in the International Mathematical Olympiad at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, sought refuge at the South Korean consulate in Hong Kong, according to the Ming Pao Newspaper on Thursday. North Korea sent six male students for the competition and was ranked sixth, with two participants winning gold medals and four silver medals. The decision made by a math prodigy whose success would have been guaranteed even in the North must have much to do with his experience in Hong Kong, which must have awakened him to the outside world.

It has been reported that some North Korean workers from Malta, the first EU member to banish North Korean workers, have recently arrived in South Korea. Amid the growing sanctions from the UN Security Council, the number of North Koreans banished from foreign countries could increase further. No matter how hard the North tries to clamp down on its people, there is no way to stop every single individual from trying to escape in search of freedom. In fact, there could be a massive exodus of North Korean workers from foreign countries, and South Korea will have to brace itself for defectors.

Hong Kong is a special administrative region to maintain the political, legislative and judiciary systems from the U.K. until the year 2047, even though the city’s sovereignty was transferred back to China in 1997. By the principle of one country and two systems, Hong Kong uses its basic law instead of the Chinese constitution, but when it comes to diplomacy and military, China has the right to step in. It is vital that China cooperate for such a sensitive diplomatic issue as transferring a prospective North Korean defector to South Korea. While it remains a fact that China is in sharp opposition to the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system in the Korean Peninsula, it should never affect such a humanitarian issue.

한기흥기자 eligius@donga.com