A/RES/63/190 GA

United Nations A/RES/63/190 General Assembly Distr.: General 24 February 2009 Sixty-third session Agenda item 64 (c) 08-48219 Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 18 December 2008 [on the report of the Third Committee (A/63/430/Add.3 and Corr.1)] 63/190. Situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea The General Assembly, Reaffirming that States Members of the United Nations have an obligation to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms and to fulfil the obligations that they have undertaken under the various international instruments, Mindful that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,0F1 the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,0H1 the Convention on the Rights of the Child 1F2 and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, 2F3 Noting the submission by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea of its combined third and fourth periodic reports on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child as a sign of engagement in international cooperative efforts in the field of human rights, Taking note of the concluding observations of the treaty monitoring bodies under the four treaties to which the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is a party, the most recent of which were given by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in July 2005,3F4 Noting with appreciation the collaboration established between the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the United Nations Children’s Fund and the World Health Organization in order to improve the health situation in the country, and the collaboration established with the United Nations Children’s Fund in order to improve the quality of education for children, as well as the recent request by the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to the World Food Programme for increased food assistance and the expanded access and improved working conditions granted, _______________ 1 See resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex. 2 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1577, No. 27531. 3 Ibid., vol. 1249, No. 20378. 4 See Official Records of the General Assembly, Sixtieth Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/60/38), part two, paras. 26–76. A/RES/63/190 2 Noting that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the United Nations Development Programme have started consultations regarding possible resumption of the activities of the Programme in the country, Recalling its resolutions 60/173 of 16 December 2005, 61/174 of 19 December 2006 and 62/167 of 18 December 2007, Commission on Human Rights resolutions 2003/10 of 16 April 2003,4F5 2004/13 of 15 April 20045F6 and 2005/11 of 14 April 2005, 6F7 Human Rights Council decision 1/102 of 30 June 20067F8 and Council resolution 7/15 of 27 March 2008,8F 9 and mindful of the need for the international community to strengthen its coordinated efforts aimed at achieving the implementation of those resolutions, Taking note of the report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, 9F10 regretting that he was not allowed to visit the country and that he received no cooperation from the authorities of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and taking note also of the comprehensive report of the Secretary-General on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea submitted in accordance with resolution 62/167,10F11 Noting the importance of the inter-Korean dialogue, which could contribute to the improvement of the human rights and humanitarian situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, including by means of securing access, 1. Expresses its very serious concern at: (a) The persistence of continuing reports of systematic, widespread and grave violations of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, including: (i) Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including inhuman conditions of detention, public executions, extrajudicial and arbitrary detention; the absence of due process and the rule of law, including fair trial guarantees and an independent judiciary; the imposition of the death penalty for political and religious reasons; and the existence of a large number of prison camps and the extensive use of forced labour; (ii) The situation of refugees and asylum-seekers expelled or returned to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and sanctions imposed on citizens of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea who have been repatriated from abroad, leading to punishments of internment, torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or the death penalty, and in this regard urges all States to respect the fundamental principle of non-refoulement, to treat those who seek refuge humanely and to ensure unhindered access to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and his Office, with a view to improving the situation of those who seek refuge; _______________ 5 See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2003, Supplement No. 3 (E/2003/23), chap. II, sect. A. 6 Ibid., 2004, Supplement No. 3 (E/2004/23), chap. II, sect. A. 7 Ibid., 2005, Supplement No. 3 and corrigenda (E/2005/23 and Corr.1 and 2), chap. II, sect. A. 8 See Official Records of the General Assembly, Sixty-first Session, Supplement No. 53 (A/61/53), chap. II, sect. B. 9 Ibid., Sixty-third Session, Supplement No. 53 (A/63/53), chap. II. 10 See A/63/322. 11 A/63/332. A/RES/63/190 3 (iii) All-pervasive and severe restrictions on the freedoms of thought, conscience, religion, opinion and expression, peaceful assembly and association, and on equal access to information, by such means as the persecution of individuals exercising their freedom of opinion and expression, and their families; (iv) Limitations imposed on every person who wishes to move freely within the country and travel abroad, including the punishment of those who leave or try to leave the country without permission, or their families, as well as punishment of persons who are returned by other countries; (v) The violations of economic, social and cultural rights, which have led to severe malnutrition, widespread health problems and other hardship for the population in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, in particular for persons belonging to vulnerable groups, inter alia, women, children and the elderly; (vi) Continuing violation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of women, in particular the trafficking of women for the purpose of prostitution or forced marriage and the subjection of women to human smuggling, forced abortions, gender-based discrimination and violence; (vii) Continuing reports of violations of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons with disabilities, especially on the use of collective camps and of coercive measures that target the rights of persons with disabilities to decide freely and responsibly on the number and spacing of their children; (viii) Violations of workers’ rights, including the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining, the right to strike as defined by the obligations of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,1H1 and the prohibition of the economic exploitation of children and of any harmful or hazardous work of children as defined by the obligations of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea under the Convention on the Rights of the Child; 2H2 (b) The continued refusal of the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to recognize the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea or to extend cooperation to him, despite the renewal of the mandate by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 7/15;3H9 2. Reiterates its very serious concern at unresolved questions of international concern relating to the abduction of foreigners in the form of enforced disappearance, which violates the human rights of the nationals of other sovereign countries, and in this regard strongly calls upon the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea urgently to resolve these questions, including through existing channels, in a transparent manner, including by ensuring the immediate return of abductees; 3. Expresses its very deep concern, while noting the willingness to seek humanitarian assistance, at the precarious humanitarian situation in the country, compounded by the misallocation of resources away from the satisfaction of basic needs and by frequent natural disasters, in particular the prevalence of maternal malnutrition and of infant malnutrition, which, despite recent progress, continues to affect the physical and mental development of a significant proportion of children, and urges the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, in this regard, to take preventive and remedial action; A/RES/63/190 4 4. Commends the Special Rapporteur for the activities undertaken so far and for his continued efforts in the conduct of his mandate despite the limited access to information; 5. Strongly urges the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to respect fully all human rights and fundamental freedoms and, in this regard: (a) To immediately put an end to the systematic, widespread and grave violations of human rights mentioned above, inter alia, by implementing fully the measures set out in the above-mentioned resolutions of the General Assembly, the Commission on Human Rights and the Human Rights Council, and the recommendations addressed to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea by the United Nations special procedures and treaty bodies; (b) To protect its inhabitants, address the issue of impunity and ensure that those responsible for violations of human rights are brought to justice before an independent judiciary; (c) To tackle the root causes leading to refugee outflows and prosecute those who exploit refugees by human smuggling, trafficking and extortion, while not criminalizing the victims, and to ensure that citizens of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea expelled or returned to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea are able to return in safety and dignity, are humanely treated and are not subjected to any kind of punishment; (d) To extend its full cooperation to the Special Rapporteur, including by granting him full, free and unimpeded access to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and to other United Nations human rights mechanisms; (e) To engage in technical cooperation activities in the field of human rights with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and her Office, as pursued by the High Commissioner in recent years, with a view to improving the situation of human rights in the country, and to prepare for the universal periodic review of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea by the Human Rights Council, which will be conducted in 2009; (f) To engage in cooperation with the International Labour Organization with a view to significantly improving workers’ rights; (g) To continue and reinforce its cooperation with United Nations humanitarian agencies; (h) To ensure full, safe and unhindered access to humanitarian aid and take measures to allow humanitarian agencies to secure its impartial delivery to all parts of the country on the basis of need in accordance with humanitarian principles, as it pledged to do, and to ensure access to adequate food and implement food security policies, including through sustainable agriculture; 6. Decides to continue its examination of the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea at its sixty-fourth session, and to this end requests the Secretary-General to submit a comprehensive report on the situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the Special Rapporteur to continue to report his findings and recommendations. 71st plenary meeting 18 December 2008

UN Project. “A/RES/63/190.” UN Project, https://un-project.org/votes/resolution/A-RES-63-190/. Accessed .

Copy citation