Photos of Bangkok Conference on NK Refugees
Human Rights Issues Discussed
Over 170 participants plus 20 international journalists and media people packed the conference hall of the Ambassador Hotel Bangkok. These are photos of several of the presenters.
Shin Dong-Hyuk talks about his experiences in a political prison camp. At one point he asked, “Why do all those children have to be stamped “criminals” at their birth? New-born babies are all innocent. Why do they have to stay criminals all through their lives while they have committed absolutely no crimes?” At that point, he begain crying and was unable to continue his speech. He struggled for more than a minute to regain his composure and resume his talk.
Click to read Shin’s speech:
I Was a Political Prisoner at Birth in North Korea
Mr. Kim Sang Hun, International Human Rights Volunteer, called for international action on behalf of the North Korean people.
Click here to read the text of his speech.
Mr. Christian Whiton (right), Deputy Special Envoy for Human Rights in North Korea, US Department of States, discusses the U.S. government’s guiding principle on North Korean human rights.
Click here for the text of Whiton’s speech.
Mr. Masaharu Nakagawa, member of the Japan Diet and co-president of the Parliamentarians’ Coalition for the North Korean Refugees and Human rights (IPCNKR), appeared at the conference.
Mr. Kato Hiroshi (center), Executive Director of Life Funds for North Korean Refugees (LFNKR), discusses Chinese government action on refugees and North Korean crimes against humanity.
Click here to read Kato’s speech.