Human rights in North Korea

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Human rights in North Korea
Human rights abuses
Political prisons (Kwanliso)
Re-education camps (Kyohwaso)
Abductions and POWs
International reactions

The human rights record of North Korea is often considered to be the worst in the world and has been globally condemned, with the United Nations and groups such as Human Rights Watch having condemned it. Amnesty International considers North Korea to have no contemporary parallel[1] with respect to violations of liberty.[2][3][4][5]

The citizens have no right to free speech, with only media providers operated by the government being legal.[6][7] According to reports from Amnesty International and the U.S. Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, by 2017 an estimated 200,000 prisoners[8] were incarcerated in camps that were dedicated to political crimes, and were subjected to forced labour, physical abuse, torture, and execution.[9]

The North Korean government strictly monitors the activities of foreign visitors. Aid workers are subjected to considerable scrutiny and they are also excluded from places and regions which the government does not want them to enter. Since citizens cannot freely travel within the country let alone abroad,[10][11] the nation's human rights record has mostly been constructed from stories from refugees and defectors. The government's position, expressed through the Korean Central News Agency, is that international criticism of its human rights record is a pretext for overthrowing its Juche-based system, while the abuses of its critics go unpunished.[12][13]

The General Assembly of the United Nations has since 2003 annually adopted a resolution condemning the country's human rights record. The resolution of December 19, 2011, passed by a vote of 123–16 with 51 abstentions, urged the government in Pyongyang to end its "systematic, widespread and grave violations of human rights", which included public executions and arbitrary detentions. North Korea rejected the resolution, saying it was politically motivated and based upon untrue fabrications.[14] In February 2014, a UN special commission published a detailed, 400-page account based on first-hand testimonies documenting "unspeakable atrocities" committed by the North Korean regime.[15]

  1. ^ "Issues North Korea". Amnesty International UK. Archived from the original on July 2, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  2. ^ "VII. Conclusions and Recommendations". Report of the Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. February 17, 2014. p. 365. Archived from the original on February 27, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  3. ^ World Report 2014: North Korea. Human Rights Watch. January 21, 2014. Archived from the original on July 7, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  4. ^ "North Korea". Christian Solidarity Worldwide. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  5. ^ "ICNK welcomes UN inquiry on North Korea report, calls for action". International Coalition to Stop Crimes Against Humanity in North Korea. February 20, 2014. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  6. ^ North Korea: Human Rights Concerns Archived June 3, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Amnesty International, November 28, 2006.
  7. ^ Cooper, Helene (March 7, 2007). "U.S. Releases Rights Report, With an Acknowledgment". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016.
  8. ^ Szoldra, Paul (March 24, 2017). "The Stories from inside North Korea's Prison Camps Are Horrifying". Business Insider.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference 80-120k was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ "North Korean Refugees NGO". Northkoreanrefugees.com. October 20, 2008. Archived from the original on June 18, 2010. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  11. ^ United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (July 2, 2008). "UNHCR Freedom in the World 2008 – North Korea". Unhcr.org. Archived from the original on October 18, 2012. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  12. ^ KCNA Assails Role Played by Japan for UN Passage of "Human Rights" Resolution against DPRK Archived April 1, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, KCNA, December 22, 2005.
  13. ^ KCNA Refutes U.S. Anti-DPRK Human Rights Campaign Archived April 1, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, KCNA, November 8, 2005.
  14. ^ "February 2012 DPRK (North Korea)". United Nations Security Council. February 2012.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference un-panel-report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).