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| ▲ This image shows a resolution on North Korea's human rights violations at a session of the U.N. Security Council. (Yonhap) |
NK rights-UN resolution
U.N. committee unveils draft resolution on N. Korea's human rights violations
SEOUL, Nov. 9 (Yonhap) -- A U.N. General Assembly committee has unveiled a draft resolution denouncing North Korea's human rights violations and voicing concerns over the regime's punishment of those repatriated from abroad.
This year's resolution, disclosed by the Third Committee of the General Assembly dealing with human rights and social affairs Wednesday (U.S. time), comes amid growing concerns over China's forced repatriation of North Korean defectors.
The resolution, sponsored by Spain on behalf of the European Union, expressed "serious" concern about the North's situation of asylum seekers and the "cruel" punishment of its citizens who have been repatriated from abroad.
It strongly urged all member states to respect the fundamental principle of non-refoulement, "especially in the light of a resumption of cross-border travel."
Although it did not mention China by name, the addition of the phrase on "cross-border travel" on this year's resolution appears to reflect concerns over Beijing's forced repatriation of North Korean defectors.
Non-refoulement refers to the international principle of not forcing refugees back to countries where they face the risk of persecution.
However, as Pyongyang's key ally, China does not recognize North Korean defectors as refugees and regularly repatriates them to their home country, where they can face harsh punishment.
South Korean human rights groups said China forcibly sent hundreds of North Korean defectors from its northeastern border regions back to the North in recent weeks.
The South Korean government has confirmed the repatriation did take place, without specifying the number of those who were repatriated.
Since 2005, the U.N. General Assembly has adopted the resolution condemning North Korea's dire human rights situation every year.
In previous years, the committee passed the resolution on the North Korea issue in mid-November for approval at the U.N. General Assembly in December.
Last year, South Korea co-sponsored the resolution for the first time in four years, as the conservative Yoon Suk Yeol administration has taken a proactive stance in dealing with the North's rights issues since its launch in May 2022.
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