National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) hosted an international symposium on “The Role of the International Community for the Improvement of Human Rights in North Korea” at the Main Conference Room, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), on May 14, 2012 in collaboration with UCLA.
The NHRCK has organized the annual international symposium for the improvement of human rights in North Korea since 2004. This year, the meeting was co-hosted with the UCLA Center for Korean Studies (UCLA CKS) (Director, John Duncan).
In this symposium, academic experts and international activists were participating including NHRCK Chairperson Byung-Chul Hyun, former Korean Ambassador to Great Britain Jong-Il Ra, Director of UCLA CKS John Duncan, Director of USC Korean Studies Institute David Kang, Professor of USC Sandra Fahy, Program Officer of Mercy Corps David Austin, President of Liberty in North Korea Hannah Song, Korean Assembly for Reunion of Ten-Million Seperated Families LA branch Advisor Ki-Wook Lee, Professor of Stanford University Ki-wook Shin, and National Endowment for Democracy Dr. Lynn Lee.
The conference started with a keynote speech by the former Ambassador to Great Britain Jong-Il Ra on human rights problems in North Korea from a perspective of Crisis of Humanity. In the following session, a presentation on the analysis and outlook of human rights in North Korea by Human Rights Commissioner Seong-Young Kim was given and followed by an experts’ discussion on human rights situation of political prisoner, the child, North Korean defectors and separated families.
At the second session, a presentation was made by David Kang (Director of USC Korean Studies Institute) on “the Role of the International Community for the Improvement of Human Rights in North Korea”. A subsequent panel discussion on the role of international community including UN Human Rights Mechanism, international organizations, civil society and overseas Koreans for the improvement of human rights in North Korea was taken place.
Furthermore, a live testimony was given at the session from a male and a female North Korean defectors who settled down in the US.
The NHRCK will reflect what was discussed at the LA international symposium in the future programs for the human rights of North Koreans. Furthermore, NHRCK expects that this international symposium was greatly contributing to raising public awareness of human rights situation in North Korea in LA where there are considerable public interests in North Korean human rights.
