The status of North Korean defectors in China has been a critical pending issue not only for North and South Korea but for international society. Currently, over 10,000 North Korean defectors are estimated to reside in China under a critical human rights situation. Many suffer from the threat of being arrested, tortured, and sent back to North Korea. Women are exposed to dangers of human trafficking and forced marriages. China, considering North Korean defectors as illegal immigrants rather than refugees, has arrested and forcibly repatriated North Korean defectors. Furthermore, it has disallowed international agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from helping this group of people within their country. China must switch its policy toward North Korean defectors by recognizing them as worthy of humanitarian assistance and strengthen its cooperation with international society, the South Korean government, and human rights organizations to help these refugees return to North Korea, settle in China, or immigrate to South Korea all according to their wishes.