中国・瀋陽の亡命者連行事件で、中国政府は、拘束していた北朝鮮人一家の出国を認めた。日本総領事館に駆け込んだ5人は、22日中国を出発し、23日朝、韓国に到着した。
The five North Korean asylum-seekers who sought refuge in the Japanese Consulate General in Shenyang were allowed to leave China on May 22, arriving finally in Seoul on May 23.
The five, whose desperate bid for asylum was captured on videotape and shown by television stations around the world, were put on a plane for the Philippines, where they were later transferred to South Korea.
The Japanese government kept quiet on the matter until the five left China, but Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi confirmed later in the day that Beijing released them to the Philippines in cooperation with the South Korean government.
"We had been demanding that China release the five to a third country and talked closely with the South Korean government," she said
She added, "China paid consideration to Japan's demand and respected the humanitarian aspects (of the case.)"
On May 8, the family of five ran into the Japanese Consulate General in Shenyang, northeastern China, in an attempt to seek asylum. Two women and a 2-year-old girl were seized by Chinese police just inside the consulate's gate
Later, the two men, who had made it into the consulate's visa-application area, were dragged out by the police.
Japan and China clashed over whether the staff of the Japanese consulate gave the Chinese police permission to enter the premises
Beijing maintains it received permission to enter. Japan denies giving consent, and claims China violated the Vienna Convention on Consular Affairs.