Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization headquartered in New York City that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policymakers, companies, and individual human rights abusers to denounce abuse and respect human rights, and often works on behalf of refugees, children, migrants, and political prisoners.
Liberty in North Korea (LiNK) is a US 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. It has offices in Long Beach, California, United States, and Seoul, South Korea. The organization rescues refugees hiding in China and resettles them in South Korea or the United States, so that they can avoid being forcibly repatriated back to North Korea, where they can face harsh punishments. The refugees first travel from China to Southeast Asia through what the organization calls an "Underground Railroad", and then on to South Korea where they are recognized as refugees.
The human rights record of North Korea is often considered to be the worst in the world and has been globally condemned, with the United Nations, the European Union and groups such as Human Rights Watch all critical of it. Most international human rights organizations consider North Korea to have no contemporary parallel with respect to violations of liberty.
Kang Chol-hwan is a North Korean defector, author, and the founder and president of the North Korea Strategy Center.
Human rights in South Korea are codified in the Constitution of the Republic of Korea, which compiles the legal rights of its citizens. These rights are protected by the Constitution and include amendments and national referendum. These rights have evolved significantly from the days of military dictatorship to the current state as a constitutional democracy with free and fair elections for the presidency and the members of the National Assembly.
People defect from North Korea for political, ideological, religious, economic, moral, personal, or nutritional reasons. North Koreans flee to various countries, mostly South Korea. In South Korea, they are referred to by several terms, including "northern refugees" and "new settlers".
The mass media in North Korea is amongst the most strictly controlled in the world. The constitution nominally provides for freedom of speech and the press. However, the government routinely disregards these rights, and seeks to mold information at its source. A typical example of this was the death of Kim Jong Il, news of which was not divulged until two days after it occurred. Kim Jong Un, who replaced his father as the leader, has largely followed in the footsteps of both his grandfather, Kim Il Sung, and his father. However, new technologies are being made more freely available in the country. State-run media outlets are setting up websites, while mobile phone ownership in the country has escalated rapidly. "There is no country which monopolizes and controls successfully the internet and information as North Korea does," said Kang Shin-sam, an expert on North Korean technology and co-head of the International Solidarity for Freedom of Information in North Korea, a nonprofit based in South Korea. North Korea has about four million mobile-phone subscribers circa 2022—roughly one-sixth of the population and four times the number in 2012, according to an estimate by Kim Yon-ho, a senior researcher at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies.
Falun Gong, a new religious movement that combines meditation with the moral philosophy articulated by founder Li Hongzhi, first began spreading widely in China in 1992. Li's first lectures outside mainland China took place in Paris in 1995. At the invitation of the Chinese ambassador to France, he lectured on his teachings and practice methods to the embassy staff and others. From that time on, Li gave lectures in other major cities in Europe, Asia, Oceania, and North America. He has resided permanently in the United States since 1998. Falun Gong is now practiced in some 70 countries worldwide, and the teachings have been translated to over 40 languages. The international Falun Gong community is estimated to number in the hundreds of thousands, though participation estimates are imprecise on account of a lack of formal membership.
In the North Korean government, the Cabinet is the administrative and executive body. The North Korean government consists of three branches: administrative, legislative, and judicial. However, they are not independent of each other, but all branches are under the exclusive political leadership of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).
Jang Song-thaek was a North Korean politician. He was married to Kim Kyong-hui, the only daughter of North Korean premier Kim Il Sung and his first wife Kim Jong-suk, and only sister of North Korean general secretary Kim Jong Il. He was therefore the uncle of the current leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un.
Daily NK is an online newspaper based in Seoul, South Korea, where it reports on various aspects of North Korean society from information obtained from inside and outside of North Korea via a network of informants. North Korea is ranked 179 out of 180 in the 2021 World Press Freedom Index, which is compiled by Reporters Without Borders.
People for Successful Corean Reunification (PSCORE) is a non-governmental organization based in Seoul, South Korea, and Washington D.C. in the United States. PSCORE addresses potential barriers to Korea reunification, suggests alternatives, and works to improve the situation of North Korean defectors in South Korea and China to bridge the gap between South Korea, North Korea, and the international community. The organization is made up of North and South Korean staff, interns and volunteers from South Korea and abroad, and North Korean defectors. While PSCORE provides news coverage on North Korea and helps defectors become South Korean citizens, a unique aspect is that educational programs are offered for North Korean defectors.
North Korean studies is a sub-area of Korean studies. The number of researchers is comparatively small. The only fully dedicated institution to the study area is the University of North Korean Studies, Seoul, but many universities run undergraduate courses and postgraduate research programs.
The Network for North Korean Democracy and Human Rights is a registered NGO based in Seoul, South Korea. The organization conducts research on and raises public awareness about North Korea, human rights in North Korea, and Korean unification. It also engages in movement building activities and has helped launch other organizations, most notably the Daily NK. Their stated goal is to "help bring about democracy and respect for human rights in North Korea."
Saejowi (Korean: 새조위), also known as Saejowi Initiative for National Integration, operates in Seoul, South Korea, as a nongovernmental organization (NGO) that assists North Korean defectors with settlement in South Korea. Saejowi sponsors programs that provide medical support, job training, and other educational opportunities in order to aid with defector adjustment to South Korean society. Additionally, Saejowi works to encourage civil involvement in the Korean reunification movement, especially among the defector community. The organization hosts programs that facilitate open communication between South Koreans and defectors from North Korea. It has previously worked with the Korean Ministry of Unification, Korea Hana Foundation, and the Community Chest of Korea.
Ji Seong-ho is a South Korean politician who is a member of the National Assembly as a member of the People Power Party (PPP). Born in North Hamyong, North Korea, in 1982, he defected to South Korea in 2006, where he worked to raise awareness about the situation in North Korea and to help fellow defectors. He was elected as a member of the National Assembly in the 2020 South Korean legislative election.
The Report of the Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is the landmark document resulting from the investigations on human rights in North Korea commissioned by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2013 and concluded in 2014.
Chingusai is a South Korean gay men's human rights group founded in February 1994. It originated from Chodonghwe, the first organization that advocated for the human rights of the Korean LGBTQ+ community. Chingusai's main focus is to raise awareness on the importance of LGBTQ+ human rights and fight against the prejudices on sexual minorities in South Korea through social activism.
The Database Center for North Korean Human Rights is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization, headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, that conducts data collection, analysis, and monitoring of human rights violations experienced in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. NKDB not only offers resettlement support, psychological counseling, and educational opportunities, but also advocates for human rights advancement and transitional justice of past human rights violations in the DPRK.
