According to a special UN report, recent rapprochements between the two Koreas and between North Korea and the United States have not led to advances in respect of human rights.
Recent rapprochements between the two Koreas and between North Korea and the United States have not allowed progress in the field of respect for human rights, said Tuesday a UN official. "The human rights situation at present has not changed on the ground in North Korea, despite these important advances in terms of security, peace and prosperity," a conference said. Tomas Ojea Quintana, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in North Korea.
The official urged Pyongyang to show goodwill and start moving forward on this point after the upcoming summits with South Korea and the United States. The rapprochement between the two Koreas is "an extraordinary development" and the June meeting between Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump is "very important" , he added.
Violation of rights
But neither the joint communique issued after the summit, nor the declaration signed by the North Korean and South Korean presidents mention the issue of human rights, he regretted. Tomas Ojea Quintana said he understood that this issue had been put aside because of the "extremely serious" subject of North Korea's nuclear weapons. But "North Korea must show that it will end its isolation in this area," he asked.
"We did not hear anything. We did not see anything coming from these summits, " he repeated, hoping for a signal coming in the opposite direction. According to the UN and NGOs, human rights violations abound in North Korea. Tomas Ojea Quintana has no access to this country. His work is based on interviews and testimonials that he can retrieve from North Koreans who have left the country. Referring to political jails, he called on the UN's new chief of human rights, Michelle Bachelet, to "initiate a process" so that the issue is no longer ignored.