The Peaceful Unification Advisory Council(PUAC)’s Global Strategy Committee, East-West Center, and the ROK Consulate General in Honolulu will host a conference on December 4 in Honolulu, Hawaii. The event will feature the U.S. and ROK North Korean human rights ambassadors and experts on the Korean Peninsula issues to raise awareness of North Korea’s continuous human rights violations and discuss ways to enhance the situation.
On November 9, the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) published a draft of its North Korean human rights resolution. The UNGA has adopted North Korean human rights resolutions for 18 consecutive years, and since 2016, it has adopted the resolution by consensus. “By consensus” means that all UN Member States have agreed to adopt a draft resolution without taking a vote, showing that the international community takes North Korean human rights seriously.
This year’s resolution, particularly, has expressed concerns about the forced repatriation of North Korean refugees following the opening of the North Korean-Chinese border. Recently, China forcibly repatriated more than 500 North Korean defectors based in China, drawing criticism from the international community. The resolution also cited the United Nations Convention Against Torture when referring to China’s forced repatriation.