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Poll: Almost half in U.S. creationist
PYONGYANG, North Korea, March 7 (UPI) -- Human Rights Watch said Wednesday North Koreans are punished harshly if they are caught crossing the border into China.
The organization said in a briefing paper released Wednesday that refugees from North Korea report that the government informed its citizens that border crossers would receive up to five-year sentences in abusive prisons.
"North Koreans are crossing into China to avoid starvation since their government is either unwilling or unable to feed them," said Sophie Richardson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "Not only does the North Korean government fail to feed its population, but it also persecutes its citizens for simply trying to survive."
The group said 16 North Koreans who successfully made it over the border into China between July and December of 2006 reported on the new penalties. Human Rights Watch said the diversity in age, gender, hometown, social class and personal experience of the refugees made their testimony credibly objective.
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