"North Korea as the Worst Human Rights Violator" 31 Countries Including South Korea, the US, and Japan Urge Security Council to Hold Public Discussion

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] On the 9th (local time), a day before 'World Human Rights Day,' 31 countries including Korea, the United States, and Japan strongly criticized North Korea's human rights issues at the United Nations. The ambassadors of these countries to the UN urged that North Korea's human rights issues be publicly addressed by the UN Security Council (UNSC).

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US Ambassador to the UN, read a joint off-site statement representing the 31 countries in front of the meeting room after a closed UNSC meeting that day.

Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield pointed out that "one of the worst human rights violators is the North Korean government," stating that North Korea imprisons more than 100,000 people in political prison camps and commits torture, forced labor, and summary executions. She also mentioned that the 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in North Korea classified North Korea's human rights violations as "crimes against humanity."

She expressed particular concern about the human rights situation of South Korean nationals detained in North Korea, mentioning the forced disappearances of South Korean and Japanese nationals and the issue of unrepatriated prisoners of war. She urged North Korea to "immediately return detainees, abductees, and missing persons home," emphasizing, "We support and encourage all efforts to hold perpetrators of human rights violations accountable."

Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield also criticized North Korea's human rights abuses as "inextricably linked to North Korea's illegal weapons development," stating, "Despite the severe economic hardship and malnutrition suffered by North Korean residents, resources are being diverted to weapons development."

Furthermore, she said, "It is time for the Security Council to address this issue publicly," urging, "We call on all Security Council members to support allowing a public briefing on North Korea's human rights violations next year." Most of the participating country ambassadors, including Hwang Joon-kook, the South Korean Ambassador to the UN, were present at this briefing.

The statement was joined not only by Korea, the US, and Japan but also by Albania, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom. This marks a significant increase in international attention to North Korea's human rights issues compared to last year, when only seven countries participated.

Meanwhile, the UNSC meeting on North Korean human rights that day was handled as an "Any Other Business" (AOB) item, and the content of the speeches during the meeting was not disclosed externally.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.