China warning to future refugees

The North Koreans barged into the Spanish Embassy in Beijing to demand passage to South Korea

BEIJING, China -- Fearing a surge of refugees, China has said it will not allow its decision to let a group of North Korean refugees leave for Seoul last week set a precedent.

"I would like to point out that such a way of dealing with the situation does not constitute a precedent for resolving similar situations in the future," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying on Tuesday.

A group of 25 North Koreans dashed into the Spanish embassy in Beijing on Thursday demanding passage to South Korea, and threatening to commit suicide if they were refused.

The group of six families and two orphan girls were allowed to leave for Seoul via the Philippines, as a result. They arrived in South Korea's Incheon International Airport on Monday.

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The asylum seekers were aided by a German doctor, Norbert Vollertsen, in China.

Vollertsen, who has also left for Seoul after the incident, said he has more events planned to highlight the suffering of North Koreans.

He is expected to launch more campaigns before the start of the World Cup in South Korea and Japan, which will kick off on May 31.

No tolerance

But Zhang sent out a stern warning against potential organizers who might try to coordinate similar attempts.

"We warn those individuals and organizations who make use of illegal entrants to stir up trouble and deliberately challenge Chinese laws."

"The Chinese government would by no means allow or ignore their illegal activities," she told Reuters.

The embassy incident is the second major North Korean defection in China in less than a year.

Last June, a family of seven sneaked into the office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees in Beijing demanding refugee status.

They were eventually allowed to leave on humanitarian grounds and went to Seoul via Singapore and the Philippines.

The defections pose a great embarrassment to China, who consider North Korea its major ally.

International praise

But China, which has been heavily criticized by the international for its human rights abuses, has won praise for its handling of the case.

In the past, China has taken a firm stance on such asylum seekers, classifying them as economic migrants that should be sent back home.

The aslyum seekers celebrate after rushing past the guards

Tens of thousands of North Koreans have reportedly fled to China to escape the North, which has suffered years of drought, floods, and fierce winters.

The latest 25 were the largest single group to defect since the 1950-53 Korean War, and now join almost 2,000 North Korean defectors who have settled in South Korea.

Seoul's National Intelligence Service reported that 138 defectors have reached the country this year. Last year, a record 583 Northerners defected to the South.

North and South Korea technically remain in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean conflict ended in an armistice that has never been replaced with a peace treaty.