The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) visited Gongneung Welfare Center in Seoul on November 13 to provide human rights counseling service to North Korean defectors settling down in South Korea.
Since the establishment of the NHRCK, it has carried out the on-site human rights counseling tailored to the needs of vulnerable groups and social minorities including migrant workers, homeless people, the elderly and youth.
The on-site counseling service focusing on North Korean defectors made its second time, following the one conducted in March this year. Aiming to give practical help to counselees, the counselors included certified counselors and investigators of the NHRCK, external lawyers and labor attorneys.
During the counseling, the NHRCK listened to human rights abuses and discrimination that the North Korean defectors often experience in their daily life or in the process of settling down in their second homes and explained how they can access remedial measures. The NHRCK will take reference to the findings from this on-site counseling session when it develops policy agenda for the human rights protection of North Korean defectors.
