Oral update on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea by the United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights

Mr. President,
Excellencies,

I am pleased to provide this update pursuant to the Human Rights Council resolution 52/28 on the Office’s efforts to implement relevant recommendations made by the Group of Independent Experts on accountability for human rights violations and possible crimes against humanity in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. ¹

In this year of the 10th anniversary of the report of the Commission of Inquiry on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, impunity continues despite the concerted efforts of civil society and international community.

Since 2017, our Office has intensified its efforts to address current and future accountability for human rights violations in and by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, some of which may constitute crimes against humanity. In the past twelve months, the number of escapees interviewed by the Office has doubled compared to the previous year. Many recent interviewees are people who left the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea several years prior, primarily men who were overseas workers, and women who had lived in neighbouring countries for several years. We have also significantly increased information and understanding of Government structures by interviewing a number of escapees who previously worked in State institutions in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

All of the information collected by the Office through monitoring and documentation is analysed by our legal experts according to the international human rights obligations of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as well as elements of crimes in the Rome Statute. The information is then securely stored in the central repository of evidence and information, established by the Office as mandated by this Council. ² It is tagged with various metadata, including gender, social status, geographic locations, State institutions and other criteria. Over the past year, the volume of information and evidence securely preserved in the repository has increased by over 10 per cent. The repository includes reports, satellite imagery, maps, court documents, videos, audio recordings, among other things. Efforts to encourage other actors to provide information to the central repository resulted in an increase in additions of third-party items in the last 12 months, including a large library of photographic information.

In developing possible strategies to be used in any future accountability processes, the Office consulted widely in the past year with national and international judicial officials and practitioners, governments, civil society experts, and academia.

Last month, the Office brought together experts in all aspects of accountability in a conference to discuss pathways to accountability and best practice globally. This included criminal justice avenues and civil liability options as well as non-judicial forms of accountability such as truth-telling, memorialization, and reparations, which the Group of Experts underlined as crucial in its 2017 report. Moving ahead in tandem with criminal accountability efforts, non-judicial accountability is essential if victims are to receive some form of justice in their lifetime.

As requested by this Council, our Office in Seoul has accelerated its consultations with victims and stakeholders with a view to ensuring a victim-centred approach to accountability. The number of individuals consulted increased more than four times in 2023 compared to 2022.

Leveraging the 10th anniversary of the Commission of Inquiry on the human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the Office dedicated extra efforts in the past 12 months to raising awareness about the human rights situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and to engaging with government officials and civil society on ways to promote accountability, particularly in the Republic of Korea and Japan.

Notably, in April 2023, the Office published a landmark report on enforced disappearances and abductions by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, including of nationals from the Republic of Korea and Japan. The report illustrated the impact of the crime on victims and their families, and their demands and needs relating to accountability.

Mr. President,
Excellencies,

In the last 12 months, the Office has worked to implement the recommendations of the Group of Experts and the Commission of Inquiry. Escapees and victims remain a primary source of information on the human rights situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as well as for current and future accountability processes. I continue to call on all relevant Member States to ensure that OHCHR has full and unhindered access to escapees. I equally urge Member States and civil society actors to share information on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea with OHCHR for preservation in its central repository. Finally, I reiterate the call to all States to refrain from forcibly repatriating people to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and to provide them with the required protections and humanitarian support. Repatriation puts them at real risk of torture, arbitrary detention, or other serious human rights violations.

Mr. President,
Excellencies,

I call upon the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to address the serious violations and international crimes that our monitoring indicates continue to occur in the country. The primary responsibility for accountability for these crimes rests with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea itself. As there are no indications that the State will address impunity, it is imperative that accountability is pursued outside the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. This should be achieved first and foremost through referral to the International Criminal Court, or national level prosecutions in accordance with international standards under accepted principles of extraterritorial and universal jurisdiction. Non-judicial accountability, such as reparations and memorialisation, were highlighted by both the Commission of Inquiry and the Group of Experts. This must be pursued in parallel with judicial accountability.

Advancing accountability is essential to upholding the human rights of the people of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and victims in and from other countries. It is also a necessary foundation for long-term peace and security in the Korean peninsula.