NK rejects UN human rights resolution

The United Nations General Assembly / Korea Times file

By Kim Bo-eun

North Korea disputed its alleged human rights violations record Monday (local time) after the United Nations passed a resolution condemning it. This is the 14th consecutive year for the U.N. to approve a resolution calling attention to the human rights situation in the North.

Pyongyang reacted angrily to the resolution, which noted U.N. member states "condemn the long-standing and ongoing systematic, widespread and gross violations of human rights," claiming all the cases cited were made up.

Estimating that over 10 million of the population is undernourished, the U.N. said there was "an unacceptably high prevalence of chronic and acute malnutrition" in the North.

The resolution was drawn up by the EU and Japan, with contributions from member states including South Korea. Other countries including China, Russia and Cuba distanced themselves from the resolution, and many stated opposition toward singling out an individual country.

North Korean Ambassador to the U.N. Kim Song said his country rejected the resolution, stating it was made up of "the most despicable false words."

The ambassador also condemned Japan for "provoking confrontation by going back against the main trend on the Korean Peninsula."

Meanwhile, the North Korea mission circulated a statement on a meeting on human rights in North Korea to the U.N. press corps the same day the resolution was passed.

A week ago, the UNSC postponed its annual meeting on human rights due to failure in getting enough support to hold it this month. The meeting has been held in December every year since 2014.

The North's statement said the UNSC "is neither a place for discussion on any human rights issue nor a platform where a human rights issue is politicized to flare up confrontation."

North Korea's statement is seen as a means to generate public opinion in its favor.

The passing of the U.N. resolution comes at a time when denuclearization talks between Pyongyang and Washington remain stalled.

Some analysts said the U.S. taking issue with North Korea's human rights situation could negatively affect the prospects for talks.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury earlier imposed sanctions on three top-ranking North Korean officials for their involvement in human rights violations.

"The human rights issue may exert a negative influence, as the two countries criticizing each other will undermine trust-building," Shin Beom-chul, a senior fellow at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies said.

However, he pointed out the core issue concerns North Korea's report of its nuclear program.

Park Won-gon, a professor at Handong Global University also said "the human rights issue will likely exert influence, as one of many factors, on the denuclearization talks between North Korea and the U.S."

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