[imText1]The US special envoy on North Korean Human Rights on Thursday urged the South Korean government to be more proactive in bringing about greater openness in the North. In a meeting with South Korea’s Deputy Foreign Minister Chun Young-woo, Jay Lefkowitz also said economic aid and human rights should be dealt with together.
Lefkowitz said the South’s proximity to the North and the fact that the relatives of many South Koreans are still living in the North made human rights there a “very immediate” issue, and added, “We believe very strongly that it is an international issue in addition to being a regional issue.”
Chun said Seoul shared the international community’s serious concern but added, “The one thing that makes us different, is that we are flexible in the approach and the means used to achieve that goal” — a broad hint that it is difficult for the South Korean government to take up the human rights issue with Pyongyang directly.
The Foreign Ministry quoted Chung as saying the human rights issue “should be addressed in harmony with the South’s priority policies for the achievement of peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. What needs to be done in the North is to bring about substantial improvement in the basic right to live” to ensure greater respect for human rights.
