News-Info-Alerts

To: ALL

From: Andi Wolos & Bob Necci

(POW-MIA InterNetwork)

Re: Another South Korean POW Escapes the North

Date: August 22, 2001

"SKorean Ex-Soldier Flees North

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - A former South Korean soldier who was captured by communist forces during the 1950-53 Korean War has returned home after fleeing the North, the government said Wednesday.

Shin Sung-soo, 72, was among 13 people who arrived recently in South Korea after escaping North Korea, South Korea's main intelligence agency said. The others were North Koreans, and five will be reunited with family members who had already fled to the South.

The National Intelligence Service did not say when the latest group of defectors arrived, nor did it provide details of their journey.


Most North Korean defectors arrive from China. Tens of thousands of North Koreans are believed to be living in hiding in China after crossing the border in search of food.

Shin was taken prisoner a month after the Korean War broke out and worked for decades at a Northern coal mine before escaping, the intelligence agency said.

The agency plans to hold Shin for questioning for as long as a month. The government and veterans' groups said they did not know if Shin has family in South Korea.

Over the years, about 20 South Korean POWs have returned home after fleeing the North, the South Korean Defense Ministry said.

South Korea believes North Korea still holds 300 Southern soldiers captured during the Korean War. Pyongyang denies it.

South Korean provides financial help and training for defectors and POWs, but many have trouble adjusting to life in the South.

"Everything was new and I felt totally lost and useless at first," said Suh Soon, 35, who defected to the South in 1999. "I bet it's equally difficult for POWs to adjust to South Korea, but it's far better than being cold and hungry in the North."

Last year, South Korea repatriated 63 former North Korean spies and guerrillas following a historic summit of their leaders in June.

A total of 344 North Koreans have fled to the South this year. Last year, 312 North Koreans fled to South Korea, up from 148 in 1999.

The Korean peninsula was divided in 1945. The Korean War ended without a peace treaty, and the inter-Korean border remains sealed."