China is reportedly preparing for the deportation of additional North Korean escapees following a large-scale repatriation earlier this month. 

Japan’s Kyodo News on Thursday quoted diplomatic sources as saying that Chinese authorities are coordinating the overland deportation of North Korean escapees held in detention facilities in Jilin Province and other areas along the border with North Korea.

Kyodo said there are growing concerns over the human rights conditions faced by North Korean escapees, as they may face severe punishments on their return to the reclusive regime. It added the South Korean government has been raising this issue with the Chinese government, saying that forcible repatriation against an individual's will violates international norms. 

Despite the criticism by the international community, China reportedly plans to continue with the forced deportations due to its diplomatic relations with the North.

According to South Korean civic groups, China began to send back North Korean escapees on a small scale from late August. A total of 26-hundred have been repatriated since then, including around 600 on October 9.