South Korean Ambassador to China Jeong Jae-ho said that he believes North Korean workers in China have recently started a series of riots due to non-payment of wages.
Ambassador Jeong Jae-ho said in a briefing for correspondents on the 4th, “Following the report that North Korean workers dispatched to China rioted in Helong City, Jilin Province in January, there is news that North Korean workers rioted in Dandong as well,” adding, “It may be due to non-payment of wages.” “It appears that the main reason is the delay in returning home, and we are monitoring related trends through the embassy and the Consulate General in Shenyang,” he said.
At a briefing held last month, Ambassador Chung stated, “There was a report that North Korean workers dispatched to China rioted and the person in charge of management was killed, but I believe this was somewhat exaggerated.”
Previously, it was reported that North Korean overseas workers dispatched to Jilin Province, China, occupied the factory and staged a protest last month to protest non-payment of wages. It is reported that about 2,000 workers participated in the strike at the time, and one manager who was held hostage died as a result of an assault. Accordingly, North Korean authorities selected about 200 people who led the riot, repatriated half of them, and promised to pay overdue wages.
Ambassador Chung explained that North Korea has recently shown signs of normalizing international exchanges. He said, “North Korea was the first Western country to visit North Korea since the coronavirus pandemic last week, with officials from the German Foreign Ministry and North Korea’s Swedish ambassador-designate visiting North Korea. This seems like a preliminary visit with the return of the embassy to North Korea in mind.” He added, “Western countries returned through their embassies in China.” “We will keep an eye on related trends as we prepare.”
In addition, Ambassador Jeong Jae-ho introduced that working-level discussions are continuing at all levels to hold the Korea-Japan-China summit in the first half of the year.
Ambassador Chung said, “At the meeting between Minister Cho Tae-yeol and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the 6th of last month, Minister Cho proposed to advance follow-up discussions to hold the Korea-China-Japan summit at an appropriate time in the first half of the year, and Minister Wang Yi reaffirmed China’s support for this. “He said.
He said, “Korea, China, and Japan are continuing working-level discussions at each level to prepare for the summit, and the embassy is also consulting with China at each level.”
Ambassador Chung also announced that a meeting of Korean and Chinese executives will be held on the 19th. He said, “The first Korea-China Managers’ Meeting, co-hosted by the Korea Employers Federation and the China International Multinational Enterprise Promotion Association, is scheduled to be held in Beijing on March 19.”
Ambassador Jeong added, “Through exchanges between Korean and Chinese companies during this meeting, there will be an in-depth exchange of opinions on Korea-China economic cooperation plans and Korea-China supply chain cooperation.”
Meanwhile, Ambassador Jeong announced that the pre-quarantine process for panda Fubao, which is scheduled to be returned on the 3rd of next month, is progressing smoothly in Korea.
He said, “The return of Fubao to China has been confirmed on April 3, and the domestic preliminary quarantine procedures for this are progressing smoothly.” He added, “On the 28th, the quarantine authorities, that is, the Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Quarantine Headquarters, inspected the indoor aviary in Everland, where quarantine is scheduled to be implemented. “We conducted an inspection and designated the breeding farm as a quarantine enforcement site on the 29th.”
He added, “As the quarantine enforcement site was confirmed, Fubao’s public disclosure ended the day before.” He added, “Fubao is scheduled to undergo epidemiological investigation clinical and detailed examination in accordance with relevant regulations at the quarantine enforcement site.”
(Beijing = News 1)
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.