The consular section of the Korean Embassy in Beijing said Friday that due to the recent surge of North Korean defectors there, it would change the way it issues visas beginning Nov. 3. The embassy had suspended the activities of its consular desk Oct. 7 - stopping services such as visa and passport issuances and military service affairs - and resumed them Oct. 20. The consular section will continue to receive visa applications from Chinese through 18 designated travel agencies, but will refuse entry to the section to anyone except the travel agencies’ employees. The move is designed to prevent North Korean defectors from entering the consular section by presenting fake identification cards on the pretext of applying for visas. South Koreans will still be permitted to enter the consular section.
One of the reasons for the dramatic influx of North Korean defectors is that they can more easily forge their identification cards now, with the help of brokers. When the section suspended its services a few weeks ago, 120 North Korean defectors were under the embassy’s protection. Now the number is more than 130. A source said that the embassy had to put restrictions on visa applications because it would have to totally close down if the number of defectors approached 200. |