1.   Three North Koreans arrived in Seoul Tuesday and sought asylum to join family members who had defected earlier to South Korea, government officials said.

2.   Unarmed Chinese police on Thursday ringed the South Korean consulate where North Koreans have stood vigil since a senior official from the North sought asylum there.

3.   But he emphasized that international law forbids citizens of a state who have sought asylum abroad to carry out actions against their country of origin.

4.   Most of the refugees went to Mexico, while other sought asylum in Honduras and El Salvador.

5.   The incident is similar to one last June, when seven North Koreans sought asylum in the UNHCR office in Beijing.