A/HRC/WGAD/2019/69 allegedly kept 11 other individuals in detention (4 crew members and 7 passengers), including Mr. Hwang Won. The authorities of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea claimed that the 11 remaining crew members and passengers were staying in the country of their own free will. 15. The source reports that on 15 February 1970 10 of the returnees provided first-hand accounts at a press conference of the mid-air seizure of Korean Air Lines YS-11 on 11 December 1969 and their 66 days in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. 16. On 20 March 1970, delegates of the United Nations Command and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea held the 373rd meeting of the United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission. During the meeting, the Secretary of the Commission proposed that a third party be asked to verify the true intentions of the 11 individuals remaining in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, but the authorities of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea allegedly rejected the proposal. 17. The source notes that at its 17th (Extraordinary) Assembly the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) adopted resolution A17-8, in which it urged “that all unlawfully seized aircraft and their cargoes be returned to the persons lawfully entitled to possession and all their passengers and crews be permitted to continue their journey as soon as practicable”. In resolution 286 (1970), the Security Council appealed to all parties concerned for the immediate release of all passengers and crews without exception, held as a result of hijackings and other interference in international travel. On 25 November 1970, the General Assembly adopted resolution 2645 (XXV), in which it condemned, without exception whatsoever, all acts of aerial hijacking and all acts of violence which may be directed against passengers, crew and aircraft engaged in civil air transport. 18. The source further notes that despite diplomatic efforts, since their initial abduction Mr. Hwang Won and 10 other citizens of the Republic of Korea have remained in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. 19. It is reported that after the first inter-Korean summit meeting, held on 15 June 2000, reunion events for separated families took place in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The family of Mr. Hwang Won submitted a request for a reunion with him, but did not receive a reply from the authorities. 20. The source notes that in 2010 the case of Mr. Hwang Won was referred to the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, which transmitted a communication to the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. In response, the Government stated that there were “no persons in [the] country who ha[d] been enforcedly or involuntarily disappeared or detained against his or her will”. The source claims that the Government presented no evidence or conducted a follow-up investigation. 21. The source submits that over recent years, Mr. Hwang Won has been residing near Sariwon, 100 kilometres south of Pyongyang. He is reportedly confined at home with heavy security and restriction of movement and is under de facto house arrest. 22. The source therefore submits that Mr. Hwang Won has been deprived of his personal liberty. In that regard, the source recalls the deliberation of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in which it stipulates that without prejudging the arbitrary character or otherwise of the measure, house arrest may be compared to deprivation of liberty provided that it is carried out in closed premises that the person is not allowed to leave. 23. The source also points out that the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has confirmed that interpretation of deprivation of liberty under international law in its deliberation No. 9 concerning the definition and scope of arbitrary deprivation of liberty under customary international law (A/HRC/22/44), as well as in its jurisprudence. 24. The source submits that the continued deprivation of liberty of Mr. Hwang Won is arbitrary and falls within categories I, II and V. 25. In relation to category I, the source argues that Mr. Hwang Won was initially deprived of his liberty by the hijacking of Korean Air Lines YS-11, a civilian aeroplane, by a State agent of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, for which there can never be any legal basis or justification. 3