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Tue, June 6, 2023 | 18:08
UN office to press N. Korea on human rights
'北 인권감시 거점' 유엔 북한인권사무소
Posted : 2015-06-23 18:12
Updated : 2015-06-23 21:48
Yi Whan-woo
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Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, right, shakes hands with the U.N.'s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein during a ceremony to mark the establishment of the U.N.'s office on North Korean human rights issues in downtown Seoul, Tuesday. / Yonhap
Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, right, shakes hands with the U.N.'s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein during a ceremony to mark the establishment of the U.N.'s office on North Korean human rights issues in downtown Seoul, Tuesday. / Yonhap

By Joint Press Corps and Yi Whan-woo


The United Nations opened an office in Seoul, Tuesday, to exclusively monitor and record North Korea's dire human rights situation.

This is the first time the U.N. has launched a field office to watch state-perpetrated human rights violations as a follow-up to the U.N. Commission of Inquiry's (COI) report released in February 2014.

"Less than 50 miles from here is another world marked by the utmost deprivation," the U.N.'s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said in a speech during a ceremony to mark the establishment of the U.N. presence in the Seoul Global Center Building in Jongno.

"We firmly believe this (office) will help lay the basis for future accountability," he added.

The OHCHR chief joined other high-profile officials and politicians, including Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se and Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo at the event.

"Let us hope that one day the people of North Korea will come to enjoy the same equality, dignity and freedom they so rightly deserve," Yun said in a speech.

The new office will be led by Signe Poulsen, an OHCHR official. He is expected to begin his new job from August.

The activities of the U.N. office will be available in Korean and English on its website (seoul.ohchr.org).

Based in Geneva, the OHCHR has sought to stop Pyongyang's crimes against humanity, including the establishment of an investigative body, in accordance with the COI report.

The report accused the dictatorial regime of running political prison camps where up to 120,000 people are thought to be detained.

North Korea has denied accusations brought by the U.N. In response to the U.N. office in Seoul, North Korea has opted to boycott the Gwangju Summer Universiade slated for July 3 to 14.

Experts speculate the U.N. office will facilitate the National Assembly in passing pending bills to improve Pyongyang's human rights record.

They said such legislative actions will effectively press the Kim Jong-un regime harder and help in the U.N.'s ongoing fight.

"The establishment of a U.N. presence in Seoul means the U.N. will put more pressure on North Korea," said Koh Yoo-hwan, a North Korean studies professor at Dongguk University.

"It also means South Korea will have a higher chance to enact a law to join the U.N.'s fight against Pyongyang."

An Chan-il, the head of the World Institute for North Korea Studies, agreed.

"The National Assembly has dragged on for years passing a bill on protecting Pyongyang's human rights," he said. "With the presence of the U.N. office, it will inevitably become more active and step up its efforts to help North Korean society."

The National Assembly has not passed a bill on Pyongyang's inhumane conditions after a related proposal was first made in August 2005. A total of 19 bills on North Korea's human rights have been proposed since then.




'北 인권감시 거점' 유엔 북한인권사무소

인권침해 책임 규명 역할…인권최고대표 공식방한, 개소식 주최

북한의 인권 상황을 감시하는 유엔의 현장 거점이 될 '유엔 북한인권사무소'(서울 유엔인권사무소)가 23일 서울 종로구 글로벌센터에서 문을 연다.

유엔 인권최고대표사무소(OHCHR)는 이날 오후 글로벌센터에서 유엔 북한인권사무소의 개소식을 열 예정이다.

유엔의 인권 분야 수장인 자이드 라아드 알 후세인 유엔 인권최고대표가 공식 방한해 개소식을 주최하며, 윤병세 외교부 장관도 참석한다.

사무소는 앞으로 북한의 인권 상황을 모니터링하고 기록하며 증거를 보존하는 역할을 하게 된다. 북한에서 벌어지는 조직적이고 광범위한 인권 침해에 대한 책임 규명을 위한 것이다.

북한 인권 문제를 지속적으로 외부에 알리고, 관련국 정부나 시민사회의 관여를 많이 끌어내는 것도 사무소의 역할이다.

5명가량의 직원으로 구성되는 사무소는 유엔을 중심으로 한 국제사회가 지난해부터 북한인권 문제를 본격적으로 공론화한 과정에서 나온 결실이다.

유엔 북한인권조사위원회(COI)는 1년간의 조사를 토대로 지난해 2월 발표한 보고서에서 북한에서 반(反)인도 범죄가 자행되고 있다고 결론짓고, 책임 추궁 등의 후속 조치를 위한 조직 설치를 제안했다.

이어 유엔 인권이사회는 COI 권고를 반영한 결의안을 채택, OHCHR에 북한인권 상황을 지속적으로 감시하고 기록할 '현장 기반 조직'을 설치하도록 요청했다.

유엔은 스위스 제네바와 태국 방콕 등도 후보지로 검토했으나, 효과적 모니터링 등을 위해서는 한국이 가장 적합하다는 데 의견을 모은 것으로 알려졌다.

우리 정부와 유엔은 이후 사무소 설치 장소와 법적 근거 마련 등 개소를 위한 사항을 협의해 왔으며 지난달 각서 교환을 통해 1차적인 법적 준비를 마무리했다.

사무소 개소는 북한 인권문제의 '책임성'을 담보할 조직을 한국 내에 설치한다는 의미가 있지만, 이미 북한의 격렬한 반발이 현실화하고 있어 남북관계에는 악재가 될 것으로 보인다.

북한은 지난 19일 '유엔 북한인권사무소를 서울에 개설했기 때문에 정치적인 이유로 갈 수 없다'면서 광주하계유니버시아드대회에 불참을 통보했다.

한편, 개소식 주최를 위해 23일 입국하는 자이드 최고대표는 25일까지 한국에 머무르면서 박근혜 대통령을 예방하고 정의화 국회의장, 윤병세 외교부 장관, 홍용표 통일부 장관 등을 만날 예정이다.

특히 그는 방한 기간 한국정신대문제대책협의회(정대협)가 운영하는 '전쟁과 여성인권 박물관'을 찾아 국내 일본군 위안부 피해자들도 만날 계획이어서 주목된다.

유엔 인권기구는 일본군 위안부 문제를 전시 여성인권 침해로 보고 관심을 기울여 온 만큼, 자이드 대표가 이번 만남에서 어떤 메시지를 보낼지 관심을 끈다.

유엔 인권최고대표가 한국을 공식 방문하는 것은 2004년 루이즈 아버 당시 최고대표의 방한 이후 11년 만이다. (연합뉴스)
Emailyistory@ktimes.com Article ListMore articles by this reporter
 
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