Four North Korean teenagers slipped into the British consulate in Shanghai yesterday seeking political asylum, the latest in a string of such defections in Chinese cities. Two other men from North Korea fled to the south by boat yesterday in a rare case of direct defection. Most refugees arrive in the south through third countries after crossing North Korea's relatively open border with China. A rights group source identified the asylum seekers in Shanghai as two boys and two girls, aged 15 to 17, who fled from North Korea to north-east China between 1999 and 2000. The four arrived in Shanghai from Beijing and made the dash for the consulate with the help of ethnic Korean Chinese nationals. Diplomats said the four walked into the visa section of the consulate and asked for asylum. Up to 300,000 North Koreans are said to be hiding in north-east China after fleeing poverty and repression in their homeland. Meanwhile, in Seoul, the military said it found the two North Korean defectors in a boat off the west coast at 1.30am on Thursday. The two men, both in their 40s, had no emergency equipment, food or extra clothing, according to the Yonhap news agency.
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