The U.N. General Assembly voted against North Korea's abuses of human rights.
Numerous organizations, human rights groups, individuals, and now nations call for a stop to North Korea’s human rights abuses. On November 18 the United Nations General Assembly voted in favor of a Council draft that refers North Korea to the International Criminal Court for its alleged crimes.
The vote occurs months after the U.N. Commission of Inquiry Report, which included documented reports of human rights abuses by the North Korean government. According to the report, North Korea has more than 120,000 people, including women and children, inside prison camps where they are tortured and forced into labor.
North Korea denies these accusations and claims that the reports are unfounded. Choe Myong-nam, North Korea’s representative, said that the vote as well as the inquiry are attempts to discredit and harm the country.
The 400 page report, according to Mr. Choe, is “the fabricated testimonies of a handful of defectors who committed crimes and abandoned the country.”
The General Assembly voted 111 to 19 in favor of the referral, with 55 nations choosing not to vote. The action, however, does not have any immediate effects. Despite the overwhelming opinion of the General Assembly, only the U.N. Security Council can refer the nation, or Kim Jong Un, to the ICC. Of the 15 members in the Security Council, five of the permanent members hold the power of veto. China and Russia, both part of the permanent group, are expected to exercise their power of veto. These two were the only countries out of the fifteen to vote against the referral.
Though China and Russia’s power of veto will bring obstruction to the realization of the referral, the overwhelming vote in the General Assembly carries diplomatic significance. North Korea took offense at the vote.
Choe claims that the U.S., among other nations, is attempting to overthrow the North Korean leadership. Mr. Choe called the vote “confrontational in nature.”
Tuesday’s vote was the U.N. General Assembly’s most direct action against North Korea’s documented human rights abuses.
