North Korean defectors form alliance to seek democratization of homeland

North Korean defectors in South Korea formed an alliance Tuesday to try to bring democracy to their homeland, the first time the growing number of those who fled the impoverished country united under a single banner.

The number of North Korean defectors in South Korea has recently topped 10,000, most of them having arrived in recent years. They have launched several separate groups, undermining efforts to have a single voice on issues regarding North Korea.

The defectors _ who are often marginalized in South Korea, where they face prejudice and difficulty adjusting to capitalism _ said they hoped the alliance will become a force that will eventually bring democracy and freedom to the North.

"We will seek ways to expose and dismantle North Korea's political prison camps by cooperating with international human rights groups," the newly formed Committee for Democratization of North Korea said in a statement.

The communist regime insists it does not violate human rights, but it has long been accused of imposing the death penalty for political reasons, holding thousands in prison camps, torturing border-crossers, and severely restricting freedom of expression and religion.

The alliance also vowed to expand efforts to rescue North Korean defectors in China, which treats them as economic migrants and deports them under a treaty arrangement with Pyongyang. Thousands of North Koreans are believed to be hiding in China waiting for a chance to defect to South Korea or the United States.

North Korea is "an infamous international criminal regime and it is a stark historical fact that no one can deny," Hwang Jang Yop, the highest-ranking North Korean official to ever defect to South Korea, said in the defector group's inaugural meeting.

Hwang also denounced South Korea's "sunshine" policy of engagement with the North, which has been criticized by conservatives for helping prop up the North's regime without requiring reforms or disarmament.