S. Korea reaffirms continued efforts on N. Korean human rights issue over U.N. resolution

SEOUL, Nov. 18 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Thursday it will continue efforts to address the human rights situations in North Korea via regional peace and the development of inter-Korean ties.

The Ministry of Unification issued the statement in response to the adoption by the Third Committee of the U.N General Assembly of a resolution condemning human rights violations by North Korea, the 17th of its kind since 2005. Its member states passed the resolution by consensus, with South Korea stopping short of co-sponsoring it in an apparent bid not to antagonize the neighbor.

Government officials here often talk about geopolitical conditions peculiar to the divided peninsula, endeavoring for denuclearization and lasting peace.

"(The government) will continue efforts for promoting the human rights of North Korean people through Korean Peninsula peace and the development of South-North relations," a ministry official told reporters on background.

It is the government's basic stance to work together with the international community, including the U.N., for the "substantive improvement" of their human rights, added the official who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The U.N. has adopted such a resolution on North Korea's human rights problem every year since 2005. This year's resolution will be forwarded to a plenary meeting of the U.N. General Assembly next month.

yunhwanchae@yna.co.kr
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