Statement by the delegation of Ukraine at the UNSC meeting on the situation in the DPRK

Mr. President,

I thank the Japanese Presidency for the timely and important topic suggested for consideration in the Security Council.

My special thanks go to Assistant-Secretary-General Miroslav Jenca and High Commissioner Zeid Al Hussein for their substantive briefings.

Today the Council meets for the fourth time to discuss the situation of human rights in the North Korea. We reiterate our strong support to the idea of holding such meetings. We do not share the position that human rights are the exclusive purview of the Human Rights Council.

Ukraine reaffirms its stance that systematic and consistent gross human rights violations are a clear early warning sign and indication of a credible threat to the international peace and security, maintenance of which is the primary responsibility of the Security Council.

Regrettably, the situation with human rights in North Korea compared to the last year has not changed for better. It still remains dire.

Mr President,

Ukraine welcomes the first visit to the DPRK since 1995 of a special procedure mandate holder, the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities, as well as the strategic framework for cooperation between the United Nations and the Government of the DPRK for the period 2017–2021, launched in January 2017.

Yet the facts, mentioned today by the briefers and by previous speakers, prove that the situation with human rights in North Korea continues to deteriorate. Urgent steps must be undertaken by the international community to reverse the targeted policy of systematic human rights violations by the North Korean regime.

The latest report of the Secretary-General highlights that «serious and widespread violations of the right to life, liberty and security of the person, and the right to a fair trial remain of concern». Indeed, even George Orwell, who thought he described the most extreme stage of totalitarianism, would be surprised by the findings of this report.

We are deeply disturbed by the continuous reports regarding grave violations of human rights in DPRK, including torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; rape; extrajudicial, summary, arbitrary and 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; collective punishments extending up to three generations and many others.

I would like to particularly mention the issue of abduction of the Japanese citizens by North Korea. Twelve of them abducted in the 1970s and 1980s are still missing, no clarification of their fate is available so far. In this regard, we fully support the call of the Secretary-General to «all stakeholders to take all steps necessary to resolve the issue of family separation, promote accountability for cases of enforced disappearance and ensure that mechanisms are in place for relatives in the two countries to remain in touch and reunite».

We all know that the North Korean regime continues to build up its military arsenal at the expense of its own people and uses the country’s limited resources to support prohibited nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The impact of diverting resources, including earnings generated by DPRK nationals working abroad, has already provoked the steady deterioration of the quality of life for ordinary citizens, which is a matter of our particular concern.

Mr. President,

We commend and fully support the establishment of the group of independent experts on accountability for human rights violations in the DPRK. Moreover, we advocate imposing further pressure on those responsible for human rights violations that may constitute crimes against humanity. We also support the initiative of the group to consider the scope for establishment of an ad hoc international tribunal for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Engagement of a broad range of actors — governments, international organizations, NGOs as well as civil society — is indeed important for effective synergy of diplomatic strategies and actions, including vigorous implementation of the existing sanctions, to push the North Korean leadership toward changes not only in the sphere of protection of human rights but also denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

We call upon the Government of the DPRK to fully cooperate with the international community and to ensure safe and unfettered access to the territory of the country for the UN monitoring mechanisms to fulfill their mandate, in particular, for the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, representatives of OHCHR office in Seoul as well as for other independent human rights mechanisms.

Thank you.