North Korea Speaking at the United Nations
On Monday October 6th, 2014, I wrote about developments in North Korea with regards to Leader Kim Jong-un. Today, on October 9th, 2014, Madison Park published a piece in CNN entitled Why Has North Korea Decided to Talk Now? In the piece, Park explains that “[w]ith Kim Jong Un still out of sight, North Koran officials have gone on a publicity blitz — making a rare move to take questions at the United Nations, arranging human rights talks with the European Union, and taking a high-level trip to South Korea” (although North and South Korea just recently “exchanged fire in the west coast of the peninsula after a North Korean boat crossed the Northern Limit Line, a disputed maritime demarcation line” (Park, 2014). In addition, it seems that one North Korean official did suggest that North Korea was not willing to talk with regards to their nuclear program (Park, 2014).
The North Korean government was asked about the health of Kim Jong Un, and was not willing to comment on the issue. They did continue to discuss issues of human rights, and what they see that the devastating effects of sanctions on North Korea.
The situation regarding North Korea does seem highly unusual, and one common explanation is that Kim Jong-un is now longer in power, and that there true power brokers, envision new relations with the world. If this indeed did happen, then one might think it will be of high importance to dialogue and conduct diplomacy with the new leadership to ensure that human rights are protected, and hopefully to come to an agreement with regards to the nuclear weapons program. However, because the current representatives are still backing their human rights efforts, saying that North Korea is “doing its best to exceed” international standards (although many know the human rights situation in North Korea is horrific), it is critical that the issue of human rights be the top priority with any sort of negotiation and dialogue with the North Korean leadership, since North Korea’s actions against its citizens have been called “crimes against humanity,” (UN Commission of Inquiry, 2014, in Park, 2014). Thus, it is also important to ensure anyone responsible must be held accountable; just because the country may be willing to open up in terms of diplomacy and international trade, it does not excuse historical and current rights violations, and thus, it should be assured that the government is completely forthright with what has and is transpiring, and that whoever is responsible will be brought to justice.
