Gov't plans to take Kaesong detainee case to U.N.

SEOUL, April 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korea plans to ask the United Nations to help
resolve a standoff surrounding the detention of a Hyundai Asan employee by North
Korea, the South Korean government said Thursday.
The announcement made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade comes 32 days
after North Korean authorities detained the Kaesong Industrial Complex worker for
allegedly criticizing Pyongyang's political system and trying to lure a North
Korean female worker to defect to the South.
The worker, identified only by his family name of Yu, is in his 40s and has yet
to be interviewed by South Korean officials.
Seoul has maintained that under a special provision governing the Kaesong
complex, the two Koreas must reach an understanding on how to deal with serious
offenses that involve South Koreans and carry punishments exceeding warnings,
fines and expulsions.
"We have been in close consultation with Yu's family, who wanted to take the
matter to the U.N. human rights commission," said a ministry spokesman. However,
he said that since requests made by families usually take a long time to process,
the government decided to make the request directly to the international body.
However, he said that because the family is hopeful that a release may be
arranged in the near future and has expressed a wish to wait a little longer
before taking the issue to the U.N., Seoul plans to reflect such views in its own
actions.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)