We thank the High Commissioner for his comprehensive report, spotlighting the worsening human rights situation in North Korea under the totalitarian leader Kim Jong Un.
Over the past decade, the government has tightened control over virtually every aspect of people’s lives: pervasive surveillance, indoctrination, and severe punishment for “economic crimes” and watching unauthorized media. As the High Commissioner said, we witnessed “a lost decade” on rights.
As Human Rights Watch has reported, North Korea expanded its use of public executions during the Covid-19 pandemic. The High Commissioner reported the expanded use of the death penalty, including for human trafficking, pornography, drug-related crimes, sex work, and distribution of unauthorized media.
Economic, social, and cultural rights have also deteriorated. State policies restricting movement and markets, combined with self-imposed isolation since 2020, have exacerbated hunger, a constant feature of many North Koreans’ lives over the past decade. Meanwhile, most of the 2014 Commission of Inquiry’s recommendations remain unimplemented.
Civil society groups outside the country are crucial in exposing these violations, enabling the High Commissioner and concerned governments to respond. Yet, many are now struggling due to recent government funding cuts.
We urge Member States to:
- Reaffirm the urgency of justice and accountability, including exploring referral to the International Criminal Court, and strengthening UN documentation for future accountability processes;
- Ensure nonrefoulement of escapees from the country;
- Increase financial and political support for North Korean civil society groups abroad;
- Ensure all engagement with, or policies regarding, North Korea integrates human rights concerns.
Inaction is inexcusable. UN member states need to work together to press the North Korean government to end the suffocating restrictions and systemic hunger it imposes on the North Korean people.
Thank you.
