The South Korean government will now carry out the body ”genetic testing” of northern residents that North Korea has refused.

The South Korean government has decided to conduct genetic testing to confirm family relationships if North Korea does not take over the body of a North Korean resident found in South Korean waters.
South Korea's Ministry of Unification announced on the 5th that it would ``revise the guidelines for the disposal of the bodies of North Korean residents in the prime minister's directive'' to include the above content.
When the bodies of North Korean residents end up in South Korean waters due to floods that occur in the summer, the South Korean government has pulled up the bodies and handed them over to North Korea.
However, recently there have been cases in which North Korea does not take custody of the deceased, so the South Korean government has been implementing a system of uninhabited funerals in cooperation with local governments in accordance with relevant regulations.
From 2010 to the present, North Korea has taken in 23 of the 29 bodies, and 6 have not.
South Korea's Ministry of Unification said, ``Regarding the body of North Korean residents that has occurred since the communication line between North and South was cut off in April 2023,
Despite the notification from the government, North Korea continues to remain unresponsive.''In the case of the body that North Korea does not take over, ``genetic testing will be required before cremation to confirm family relationships.'' I decided that
"We have decided to revise the association guidelines."