Human Rights in North Korea

Description

Human rights in North Korea are heavily restricted. Freedom of speech is forbidden, and the only radio, television, and news organizations that are deemed legal are those operated by the government. It is estimated that between 150,000 and 200,000 political prisoners are detained in concentration camps, where they perform slave labour and risk summary beatings and execution. It is difficult to assess the full extent of human rights abuse in North Korea. The North Korean government makes it very difficult for foreigners to enter the country and strictly monitors their activities when they do. Aid workers are subject to considerable scrutiny and excluded from places and regions the government does not wish them to enter. Since citizens cannot freely leave the country, it is mainly from stories of refugees and defectors that the nation's human rights record has been constructed. The government's position, expressed through the Korean Central News Agency, is that North Korea has no human rights issue, because its socialist system was chosen by the people and serves them faithfully. North Korea's human rights record has been widely condemned, including by Amnesty International and the United Nations, which passed a General Assembly resolution in 2008. (via DBpedia)