Many North Korean refugees are concerned that their families in the North may suffer because their activities in the South were allegedly reported to the North. Refugees who are engaged in anti-Kim Jong-il activities are also worried about their own safety. Cha Sung-joo, secretary general of the Committee for Democratization of North Korea, said, "North Korea's Ministry of Public Security and the State Security Department control North Korean society by instigating a sense of fear. It turns one of every three North Korean residents into a spy and makes people afraid to speak even with their friends. The North Korean Public Security Ministry seems to be trying to cause fear in the North Korean refugee community in the South."

They are further concerned because the arrested woman, Won Jeong-hwa, allegedly attempted to kill high-profile North Korean refugees, including Hwang Jang-yup, a former secretary of the North Korean Worker's Party. Many North Korean refugees still remember the assassination of Ri Han-yong, the nephew of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's former wife, by North Korean agents in the 1990s

And South Korean distrust of North Korean refugees living here is likely to grow. Currently, some 14,000 refugees live in the South, and many of them have failed to adapt.

Lee Hae-Young, secretary general of the Association of the North Korean Defectors, said, "The most difficult problem facing North Korean refugees in South Korea is how to find jobs. In the wake of the latest spy case, we're worried that South Koreans will lose all trust in the refugees."

He added most refugees are “victims of the Kim Jong-il regime's tyranny. It's wrong to blame the entire community of North Korean refugees just because of some North Korean agents. At this juncture, we need South Korean society's special concern for us," he added.

(englishnews@chosun.com )