Dozens of North Korean defectors are held by a rebel group in a Myanmar region bordering Thailand, and the group is demanding a ransom for their release, a South Korean activist claimed Friday.
A total of 64 North Koreans are being used for slave labor in a rebel-controlled district, about 80 kilometers northeast of Tachilek, said Kim Hee-tae, an activist for North Korean human rights.
Kim said he learned of the enslavement from a South Korean missionary living in the region, known to be a transit point for North Korean defectors seeking to reach Thailand from China.
Male captives are being used for poppy growing while female captives are being forced to work in drug processing farms or alcohol manufacturing plants, Kim said. (Yonhap News)
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