Human Rights Commissioner Song Doo-hwan "Welcomes UN General Assembly Adoption of North Korea Human Rights Resolution... Serious Human Rights Violations Must Be Improved"

Song Doo-hwan, Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea. / Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] Song Doo-hwan, Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, welcomed the adoption of the North Korean human rights resolution at the United Nations General Assembly and called for efforts to improve human rights in North Korea.

On the 17th, Chairman Song issued a statement saying, "I welcome the adoption of the North Korean human rights resolution by consensus without a vote at the 76th UN General Assembly."

Chairman Song evaluated, "This UN General Assembly resolution emphasizes cooperation between North Korean authorities and the international community to resolve North Korean human rights issues, based on the fundamental principle that all UN member states have the obligation to protect and promote human rights and fundamental freedoms, comply with international human rights treaties they have joined, and promote and encourage respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all people."

He added, "The National Human Rights Commission hopes that the serious human rights violations pointed out in this UN General Assembly resolution will improve through the proactive attitude of North Korean authorities and the continuous attention of the international community," and emphasized, "We will work together with the international community for the substantial improvement of human rights in North Korea."

The UN has adopted the "Resolution on the Human Rights Situation in North Korea" for 17 consecutive years since the 60th General Assembly in 2005. This resolution pointed out human rights violations in North Korea, including torture and inhumane treatment, sexual violence against women, extrajudicial and arbitrary detention, lack of due process and rule of law, summary and arbitrary executions, death sentences for political and religious reasons, widespread forced labor of children, large-scale political prison camps, and inhumane punishment of North Korean defectors who were deported or repatriated to North Korea. Notably, this resolution included for the first time in a General Assembly resolution concerns and allegations of human rights violations against South Korean prisoners of war and their descendants.

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