[Briefing]50th NKDB Monthly Briefing and Discussion

25 Jun 2018
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On June 25th, NKDB held its 50th Monthly Briefing and Discussion on North Korean Human Rights. In this very special session, we hosted Ms. Heo Yeong-hui from the DPRK and Ms. Signe Poulsen, Head of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Seoul. 


At the Briefing, we were all touched to hear Ms. Heo’s story about how she escaped North Korea after spending 76 days at a detention facility under precarious conditions. Although she has managed to safely arrive in South Korea, her son and husband who later escaped from North Korea to reunite with her, were caught by the Chinese police and were repatriated short afterwards. Ms. Heo has reached out to the UN Human Rights office to find out about the whereabouts and conditions of her relatives as she fears they have been sent to a political prison camp.


Ms. Poulsen talked about the UN’s approach towards North Korean human rights after the two summits between the DPRK and South Korea and the USA. She stressed that human rights are a fundamental part of peace and thus the office in Seoul will keep moving forward to pursue accountability for victims of human rights abuses through transnational justice mechanisms.

 

Participants of the Briefing included representatives from embassies and delegations in Seoul, including those from Australia, Canada, Finland, Italy, and the USA. Additionally, International organizations and media representatives from the OHCHR, Stars & Stripes, the Wall Street Journal, and the Asahi Shimbun Tokyo were also in attendance. Thank you once again to all of you who joined our 50th Briefing!