Page 6 - NKHR Hawaii Conference 2023

PRESIDENTIAL MESSAGE
YOON SUK YEOL, President of the Republic of Korea

Message on North Korean Human Rights from the President of the Republic of Korea

North Koreans today are still denied basic human rights under intense surveillance and
punishment by the authorities.

T e fundamental force for improving human rights in North Korea is the
truth.

In 2014 the United Nations (UN) Commission of Inquiry (COI) on Human Rights in
the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) documented the regime’s systematic
and widespread human rights violations, concluded they were crimes against humanity,
and recommended referral to the International Criminal Court. Since then, the horrif c
reality of North Korea’s human rights record has become known around the world, thus
strengthening international solidarity and cooperation in demanding changes. T e ROK
will be a member of the United Nations Security Council in 2024 and 2025, which will
strengthen the international community’s coordination on the human rights issue in
North Korea.

As you all know, our government publicly released the f rst-ever North Korea Human
Rights Report last spring which, based on the testimonies and evidence from hundreds
of North Korean defectors, revealed the reality of the current human rights violations
and informed the international community. We will also strengthen trilateral cooperation
to promote human rights in North Korea, as agreed in the ROK-US Washington
Declaration in April and the ROK-US Camp David Joint Statement in August.