U.N. official points to human rights challenges in her home country

Kang Kyung-wha, now in her sixth year as U.N. Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, sees her home country of Korea as a model member state in the United Nations, having achieved both economic development and political democracy. But she also sees a nation facing challenges in human rights.

Visiting Seoul to attend the 33rd ICW-CIF General Assembly last week, Kang voiced her dismay at the casualness with which incidents of violence against women, young and old, are dealt with by leaders who have authority and influence. There is also much to do for the rights of people with disabilities, and the need to seriously address human rights issues in North Korea, she said.

Kang, 57, was serving as director-general for U.N. affairs at South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 2007 when she applied for the post she currently holds. She was appointed to the post by then Secretary General Kofi Annan and is currently the second-highest ranked Korean in the U.N. after Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

She is personally interested in women's issues, particularly violence against women. It was in fact her interest in women's issues that motivated her to apply for the post of deputy high commissioner. She participated in the fourth U.N. World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995, which opened her eyes to the "real work of the United Nations, beyond the textbooks and courses on the global body" that she took in college, she said. Kang chaired the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women for its 48th and 49th sessions in 2004 and 2005.

"While the attention is focused on the most egregious cases, such as the massive and brutal sexual violence perpetrated as a tool of warfare, no country is entirely free from violence against women, whether it is domestic violence, workplace harassment, or the so-called honor crimes," noted Kang.

On North Korea, Kang called on "all sides of the political spectrum" in the South to seriously address the issue of human rights in North Korea, "without conflating it with other pending matters" with the North.

The U.N. Human Rights Council adopted a resolution on the North Korean human rights issue by consensus this year, whereas in previous years, it had been decided by vote. This indicates that international concern about the problem is growing and deepening, she said.

"I do hope that the Republic of Korea (South Korea) is able to speak with one, consistent voice on this matter, for which the international community expects it to take the lead," said Kang.

Domestically, "there is much room for improvement," she said. The hard-won rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association must be safeguarded, first of all, and tolerance and respect for disagreements and dissent needs to be nurtured, said Kang.

Her past year has been heavily focused on Syria. What had started as peaceful demonstrations rising up against a repressive regime to claim basic human rights has turned into an all-out armed conflict between government forces and opposition armed groups. Civilians, including women and children, are bearing the cost with their lives.

"The death toll continues to rise every day. It is intolerably frustrating that those with the influence and clout, either inside the United Nations or in the region, have so far been unable to take effective action to end the violence and destruction," Kang said.

The rise of intolerance and xenophobia in many countries is also very concerning, she observed. "Expulsion of migrants, hate speech against minority groups, attacks on religious minorities and blatant discrimination against non-nationals not only are contrary to international human rights standards but they can also fuel social tension and instability that could lead to conflict and violence," Kang said.

Being in a position of leadership in the U.N. system has its own challenges, she said. Working with and supervising colleagues that come from myriad different cultural backgrounds and work habits, in a mammoth bureaucratic institution that has evolved and sprawled over six decades, requires an enormous amount of patience and tenacity.

For her, the most difficult challenge has been how to deal with underperforming staff and political pressure from member states. "But working for human rights, for universal norms has always been rewarding and motivating," Kang said.

The most rewarding, she said, are her visits to the field, to countries where human rights officers are working to protect victims and the vulnerable, and to assist governments. She has visited nearly 40 countries as deputy high commissioner, including some of the most challenged countries in the world in terms of human rights, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan and Haiti.

"In talking to victims of grave human rights violations wherever I go, I am always amazed and humbled by their invariably undaunted spirit to reclaim their dignity and rights," Kang observed, adding that she hopes to have a chance to work in the field in the future. "I do believe that the real work of the United Nations is in the field, alongside the people," she said.

Kang stands out, in a way, because for South Korea it has been an uphill struggle to claim its share of the professional posts in the global body. Countries that became U.N. members from the very start of the organization in 1945 have an advantage, but South Korea, which joined in 1991, is a relatively a new member, said Kang.

For young Koreans hoping to work in the U.N., Kang advises experience. It is critical to accumulate enough of it in a related field before applying, she said, describing how she has seen many applications not making it through the first screening because they didn't indicate a sufficient number of years of experience in the field. It is important to decide early which areas of work one wishes to pursue and then build up work experience, she said. (Yonhap)