[imText1]SEOUL- On Thursday, December 8, 2005, Leaders of the North Korean pro-democracy movement gathered for a summit on the Hermit Kingdom, North Korea’s dismissal of human rights. This international three-day conference on the human rights of North Korea sets aims to raise awareness of the North’s human rights issues, and to introduce various ways of improving the current situation.
Keynote speakers including the defector and former North Korean Workers’ Party secretary, Mr. Hwang Jang Yop and Suzanne Scholte, President of the Defense Forum Foundation and North Korea Freedom Coalition, strongly urged the South Korean government along with its people to get involved in bringing freedom to its communist counterpart. Hwang stated that the “North Korean human rights should not just be rhetoric,” but actions need to be taken. Elizabeth Batha, a human rights lawyer with the UK’s Christian Solidarity Worldwide, further explained how the EU-initiated resolution on North Korean Human rights was proposed and later adopted by the UN General Assembly. In addition to this, former Amnesty International U.S. chief David Hawk, the author of “The Hidden Gulag” spoke about the spread of campaigns to improve North Korean human rights.
Throughout the conference, it was emphasized that Koreans were being desensitized when it came to the issues of North Korean human rights. The South Korean government was criticized for turning away from this issue, and consequently acknowledging the oppressive Kim Jong Il regime. Individuals, especially Koreans were encouraged to come together and stand firmly in fighting for human rights in North Korea.
Defectors are seen to be key roles in restoring North Korean human rights in that the issues at hand directly affect their family members. There have been many progressions within the last 5 years, and Leaders at the summit expressed to have high expectations for this year’s Seoul Summit.
