WASHINGTON: South Korea, the United States, and Japan have underscored their collective efforts to address the human rights situation in North Korea, asserting that such efforts are crucial for ensuring long-term peace on the Korean Peninsula. The announcement came after the first trilateral meeting on the issue took place in Washington.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the three nations issued a joint statement highlighting the urgency of improving human rights conditions in North Korea. The statement emphasized that the North Korean regime is notably one of the world’s most egregious human rights violators, engaging in various abuses both within its borders and internationally. The governments called for a global initiative to enhance the human rights landscape in the isolated state.
The joint statement detailed regular and credible reports of severe human rights abuses in North Korea, including summary executions, assassinations, abductions involving South Korean and Japanese citizens, torture, and unlaw
ful detentions. The countries appealed to the international community to move beyond merely monitoring these violations to actively promoting accountability.
South Korea, the United States, and Japan pledged to intensify collaborative efforts to ensure access to independent information in North Korea, hold perpetrators of human rights abuses accountable, and amplify the voices of North Korean defectors and refugees. They also emphasized the urgency of resolving issues related to abductees, detainees, unrepatriated prisoners of war, and separated families.
The statement also highlighted concerns about North Korea’s use of forced labor, both domestically and abroad, and the countries’ commitment to countering these practices. Additionally, the U.S. and Japan expressed support for South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s vision of a unified, peaceful, and prosperous Korean Peninsula.
In a nod to the “Spirit of Camp David,” the three governments reaffirmed their shared vision and commitment to addressing human r
ights challenges in North Korea. The “Commitment to Consult” agreement, established during the Camp David summit held in Maryland in August last year, was also reiterated as a framework for addressing shared threats.