The Ministry of Unification has announced that this year’s Report on North Korean Human Rights will be produced solely as an internal, non-public document, departing from its practice since 2018.
On Tuesday, a Ministry official stated in a press briefing that it will continue to produce and manage the North Korean Human Rights Report as internal documents, which will be transferred to the Ministry of Justice for preservation as required by law.
Since the enactment of the North Korean Human Rights Act in 2016, the government has published annual reports on human rights conditions in North Korea starting in 2018. The Moon Jae-in administration classified this document as Top Secret due to concerns about exposing information from defectors and potential impacts on inter-Korean relations, thus keeping it from public view.
However, the Yoon Suk Yeol administration decided to publicly release the report in 2023-2024 to inform the international community about North Korea’s human rights situation. They also produced an English version for distribution to international organizations.
The Lee Jae-myung administration, which has prioritized a conciliatory approach towards North Korea since taking office, initially considered not publishing the North Korean Human Rights Report this year. However, following media coverage and criticism from political circles urging the resumption of the publication process, the administration appears to have reconsidered its stance.
Kim Gun, a member of the National Assembly from the People Power Party and a member of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, stated during a committee meeting that not producing the North Korean Human Rights Report at all is a dereliction of duty. Further noting that North Korean human rights are a universal value that transcends political regimes and ideologies. He added that if the state stops documenting this history, the voices of the victims will be buried in darkness.
Kwak Kyu-taek, the chief spokesperson for the People Power Party, also criticized the government in a statement on August 13, saying that the North Korean Human Rights Report is a valuable record that documents and preserves the state of human rights in North Korea and informs the international community. Further noting that halting it would mean abandoning oversight and erasing those atrocities from history.
It appears that the government has shifted from its initial stance of not publishing the report to opting for confidential publication while keeping it confidential, likely in response to this criticism.
However, the Ministry official added that they believe that North Korean human rights policies that provoke public denunciation have minimal impact on the actual improvement of human rights for North Korean residents, indicating the government’s intention to avoid using the human rights issue as a tool for confrontation with North Korea.