Kim Young-hwan, the North Korea human rights activist from South Korea, told local media that about two weeks after his March 29th arrest, Chinese authorities deprived him of sleep for seven straight days.
On the sixth day of sleep deprivation, Kim said he was electrically tortured for about five to eight hours, and slapped on the face until he was bruised.
He said it was only after he began to speak about his activities in China related to North Korean human rights, that the electric shocks and beatings ended.
Yet the authorities forced the activist to sleep while sitting on a chair for another two weeks.
Human Rights Activist Reveals Details about Physical Torture in China
Choi You-sun
Arirang News
http://www.arirang.co.kr/News/News_View.asp?nseq=134294&code=Ne2&category=2
Kim Young-hwan, the North Korea human rights activist from South Korea, finally spoke in detail about the physical abuses he was subject to during his four-month long detention in China.
Kim, who was questioned by the National Human Rights Commission Monday, told local media that about two weeks after his March 29th arrest, Chinese authorities deprived him of sleep for seven straight days.
On the sixth day of sleep deprivation, Kim said he was electrically tortured for about five to eight hours, and slapped on the face until he was bruised.
Kim added that he thought the order to torture him came from Beijing, since officials checked his blood pressure and performed an electrocardiogram before the severe treatments began.
He said it was only after he began to speak about his activities in China related to North Korean human rights, that the electric shocks and beatings ended.
Yet the authorities forced the activist to sleep while sitting on a chair for another two weeks.
Kim then asked what prevented the South Korean government from arranging a consul interview in the first month of his detention.
Seoul has said Beijing denied it permission for a meeting with the activist during that period.
The South Korean government has been criticized for not doing enough to press China about the physical abuse Kim faced following a second consul meeting with him in June.
Officials in Seoul have said Beijing had denied the torture numerous times, and that the government had to consider the fact that Kim and his fellow activists were still in China’s custody.
The presidential chief of staff on Monday said Seoul will do its best to prevent a repeat of similar incidents and to press China to verify the facts of this case.
Kim, while expressing concerns about how his testimony may affect activists currently helping North Korean defectors in China, said he wants an official apology from Beijing.
He said he is also considering legal action against the Chinese government.