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U.N. General Assembly adopts resolution on N.K.’s human rights

U.N. General Assembly adopts resolution on N.K.’s human rights

Posted December. 20, 2014 07:59,   

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The United Nations General Assembly held a plenary session at the U.N. headquarters in Manhattan, New York on Thursday, and adopted a resolution recommending "referring of the North’s human rights situation to the International Court of Justice" in a vote of 116 in favor, 20 against, and 53 abstaining.

Compared with a vote (111 in favor, 19 against and 55 abstained) at the Third Committee on human rights held on Nov. 18, those who voted for and against increased five votes and one vote, respectively, while those who abstained decreased two this time. The country that voted against in the UN General Assembly is Gambia, which abstained in the Third Committee vote. UN sources said that Gambia’s decision was apparently influenced by its recent expansion of cooperation with North Korea in the agriculture, fisheries and construction fields.

The resolution on the North’s human rights violation has been adopted for 10 consecutive years since 2005. However, this year’s resolution is considered the strongest. The latest resolution has recommended that the UN refers the North’s human rights situation to ICC, and imposes sanctions against those responsible, in compliance with a report by the U.N. Commission of Inquiry.

The South Korean foreign ministry said, “The adoption of the U.N. General Assembly’s resolution under overwhelming support reflects the U.N. and international community’s strong commitment to counter human rights violations in North Korea,” adding, “The North is urged to take specific and practical measures to improve North Koreans’ human rights in compliance with the U.N. recommendation.”

The U.N. Security Council will make decision on whether to adopt North Korea’s human rights issue as an agenda on Monday. The issue will be taken as an agenda if nine of the 15 UNSC member states approve. As three permanent members including the U.S., Britain, and France, and seven non-permanent members including South Korea, Australia, Luxemburg, Rwanda, Lithuania, Jordan and Chile have expressed their intentions to approve it, the issue will likely be adopted easily. If the issue is adopted as an UNSC agenda, the council can address the issue anytime within the next three years. Pyongyang has objected the move, saying UNSC has no authority to refer the issue to ICC, but Sudan and Libya were already taken to ICC based on UNSC decisions.

On the U.N. General Assembly’s resolution, Pyongyang earlier said it rejects the resolution focused on collapse of the North Korean regime. It also claimed that as long as a "plot of human rights" continues, it will not participate in talks regarding the North’s nuclear issues.