North Korea: We must learn from past

North Korea: We must learn from past that human rights are central to lasting peace, says expert

NEW YORK (24 October 2018) – A UN expert on North Korea said there had not been any substantial improvement in human rights in the country even as détente takes hold on the peninsula, imploring the world to learn from past experience that it is essential to put human rights at the centre of any strategy to build a lasting peace.

In his latest report to the UN General Assembly, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Tomás Ojea Quintana, said interviews with persons who recently left the country indicate a grave situation of chronic food insecurity and serious difficulties in living conditions, as well as ongoing severe restrictions on basic freedoms.

While commending the efforts that have paved the way for the current rapproachement, as well as the determination of all governments in continuing the process of dialogue, he urged the international community to bring human rights to the negotiating table without further delay. “History has shown time and again that, if the human rights issues are not addressed, there can be no genuine or sustainable peace, security or development,” he said.

The UN expert stressed that the ongoing dialogue on peace and denuclearisation had provided a critical opportunity to lay the foundations of a human rights dialogue with the Government of the DPRK.

“The international community needs no reminder that it is now well aware of the findings of the 2014 United Nations Commission of Inquiry on human rights in the DPRK, which documented grave human rights violations in the DPRK, including crimes against humanity,” he said.

“To address human rights in DPRK is not only the responsibility of the parties involved in negotiations, but also a primary burden of the United Nations as a whole.”

In urging all stakeholders to develop a clear and explicit strategy to start improving the human rights situation in the DPRK, and calling on the DPRK authorities to open up to the human rights agenda, to end an era of isolation and to allow access to its territory, Mr Ojea Quintana stressed: “Ultimately, it is tangible results for the people of the DPRK that matter”.

Since his appointment by the UN Human Rights Council in March 2016, the Special Rapporteur has not been granted access to the DPRK, despite repeated requests.

ENDS

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