Tag Archives: north korea
Basic Report on Human Rights Conditions in North Korea
On Feb. 16, Hiroshi Kato, Executive Director of LFNKR lectured on the abuse of human rights in North Korea in response to an invitation by the Working Team for Enhancing Human Rights Diplomacy and International Contribution of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.
Based on the UN human rights report on North Korea 2014, Mr. Kato’s talk covered the specific human rights abuses still going on in North Korea according to actual experiences of North Korean defectors interviewed by LFNKR. So far, LFNKR has helped over 200 North Korean defectors to reach the destinations where they wished to resettle, including in Japan.
Public Eye Turning Away from North Korea’s Abuses
Translated From a Recent Issue of the LFNKR Newsletter
Tragedy Awaits Withdrawal from Activities for Human Rights in North Korea
By Ken Kato — ICNK Affiliate-Director, Human Rights in Asia
Milgram’s Experiment
TO~ everyone dedicated to maintaining human rights activities for the North Korean people:
Rescue Requests Growing Again
Fear Spreading Among High Officials
Chang Song-thaek, the once-powerful uncle of Kim Jong-Un and former number two in North Korea’s power structure, was arrested and executed in December 2013. Since then, power struggles and purges have grown in the country. According to reports filtering out, the ongoing investigations, purges and executions are often directed toward officials responsible for the earning of foreign currencies. So widespread have these practices become that they are now cutting a swath through mid-level management. Increasing numbers of officials are falling before this reign of terror. The instability of the regime has even had a dampening effect on the economic activities of the general populace.
LFNKR to participate in NK human rights event
LFNKR board member will join Japan’s NK human rights symposium in NY
On May 5th, 2015, the government of Japan will host the international symposium on human rights violations by North Korea, including their record of abductions. LFNKR is dispatching a permanent board member to participate in the special event.
A Whole New Look
Website Facelift
See anything different? Silly question, right? You’re probably already noticing the new look. Here at NorthKoreanRefugees.com we’re in the process of changing our site’s appearance. Starting today, we’re sporting an entirely new, more streamlined style.
The old look was a very new look back in 2002, when we first launched this site. But time marches on – especially on the Internet – and the very newest thing can be superseded very quickly by technology that works better, faster and more transparently.
2 Executed, 7 to Prison Camp
7 Sent to Labor Camp, 2 Executed
An Example of NK’s “Humanitarian” Treatment of Defectors
In June of 2013, we reported on 9 orphans who made it all the way out of North Korea, across China, and into Laos before they were arrested and repatriated to the brutal regime they were trying to escape. (See “World Community Outraged by Orphans Returned to NK“)
Now, news is starting to filter out about what happened to them. The Dong A Ilbo website in South Korea reports that of the nine young escapees, two were executed, and the other seven sent to the infamous Prison Camp 14.
Whitewash Goes to Prison
Infamous Prison Camps
Prison Camp Getting a Face Lift
It appears that North Korea may be instituting a new prison reform – in its own strange way.
Reports filtering out of North Korea suggest that political prisoners are secretly being smuggled out of the notorious Yodok prison camp in North Hamgyeong Province, and transferred to other camps under cover of darkness, so that their movements cannot be tracked by satellite cameras.
Joint Statement to Prime Minister Abe
Japanese & Korean NGOs
To Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
Request for the Permanent Resettlement in Japan of all Japanese Spouses and Family (including grandchildren) of Ethnic Koreans “Repatriated” to North Korea on the occasion of the Stockholm Agreement between Japan and North Korea
On the occasion of the July 1 initiation of the Japan-North Korea government-level consultations, we would like to express our deepest respect for your commitment to resolving humanitarian problems including the issue of helping those abducted by North Korea.