UN Committee Adopts North Korean Human Rights Resolution for 20 Consecutive Years

"Condemnation of North Korea's Human Rights Violations"

The North Korea human rights resolution condemning the systematic and widespread human rights violations in North Korea was adopted for the 20th consecutive year by the UN Human Rights Committee under the UN General Assembly.

On the 20th (local time), the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly held a meeting at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA, and adopted the North Korea human rights resolution by consensus without a vote.

The North Korea human rights resolution highlights the severe human rights situation in North Korea and calls for measures to improve it. It has been adopted for 20 consecutive years since 2005.

This resolution added new content along with a united message from the international community urging improvement of human rights in North Korea. The resolution stated, "North Korea announced in January 2024 that it will no longer pursue unification with the Republic of Korea," and expressed concern about the negative impact this could have on the human rights situation, including the issue of separated families.

For the first time, it also called for the abolition and reform of the so-called '3 Major Evil Laws'?the Law on the Rejection of Reactionary Thought and Culture, the Law on Guaranteeing Youth Education, and the Law on the Protection of Pyongyang Dialect. The resolution argued that North Korea severely restricts freedom of thought and conscience through these three laws and "demands the abolition or reform of all such practices and laws."

Furthermore, it pointed out that North Korea funds its illegal nuclear and missile programs through human rights abuses and mistreatment such as forced labor. It also urged the immediate repatriation of all abductees from Japan and the Republic of Korea.

Kim Sang-jin, Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, said after the adoption of the resolution, "The human rights situation in North Korea, which corresponds to crimes against humanity as pointed out in the 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) report on North Korea, has rather worsened over time," and added, "North Korea needs to take action to resolve human rights issues while paying attention to the human rights resolutions that have received broad support from the international community over the past 20 years."

The resolution adopted on this day is scheduled to be submitted to the plenary session of the UN General Assembly in December for final adoption. Although UN General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding under international law, they carry a political and moral obligation to be respected as they represent the united demands of the international community.