Russian draftees seeking refuge await decision in South Korea

Three draft-eligible Russians have been left stranded at Incheon Airport for about four months as they await the South Korean government’s decision on their refugee claims.

The Russian men -- aged 26, 34 and 38, respectively -- first got here in October and applied for refugee protection after initially reporting their purpose of visit as tourism. Their applications were rejected by the Ministry of Justice, however, which stated that fleeing military service would not qualify as a reason to claim refugee status.

With the help of refugee rights advocates in Seoul, the three took the Justice Ministry’s rejection to court and then won in part in a first trial held last week. The district court in Incheon sided with two of the refugee seekers, saying they appear to have reasons for eligibility for protection other than simply to avoid being drafted.

Lee Jong-chan, the lawyer representing the Russian men, said they have been “living in a constant state of doubt and anxiety” for the past few months.

“After Putin ordered the mobilization last September, these young men fled from home and a future of needless uncertainties loomed over them,” he said in a phone call with The Korea Herald.

He said that they have been “staying in subpar conditions” in the waiting area at the airport where they are accommodated.

The two who won in the first trial -- the 34-year-old and the 38-year-old -- can leave the airport and enter the country with no conditions attached if the Justice Ministry does not appeal the court’s ruling. If the Justice Ministry decides to appeal, they would still be allowed out of the airport on the condition they do not reapply for refugee protection until the appeals process is complete.

The Justice Ministry has two weeks from the day of the sentencing to decide whether to appeal the first ruling. As of Monday afternoon, the ministry’s senior official told The Korea Herald it was still reviewing the case and had yet to determine whether or not to appeal.

As for the 26-year-old, he would need to leave South Korea and search for protection elsewhere if the court sticks to the initial ruling, according to Lee. The court said that as he held double citizenship in Kyrgyzstan and has family there, he would not be able to apply for refugee status here unless he was denied protection in the country of his citizenship.

The court saw that for the 34-year-old there was the possibility of persecution if he returned, as he testified of his participation in demonstrations in support of opposition figure Alexei Navalny in Russia prior to the war in Ukraine and had previously been arrested as a result.

The 38-year-old told the court that as a member of the Tajik ethnic minority and a Muslim, he was likely to be sent to the front lines of the war. The court saw that this was a legitimate cause to fear persecution.

“I’m not saying they should be granted protection. I’m saying they should at least be granted the opportunity to apply and be considered,” Lee said.