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UN Human Rights Investigator Calls For Prosecution Of North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un

Marzuki Darusman said North Korea is devoting huge resources to developing nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction while many of its citizens lack sufficient food.
Stephanie Nebehay
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ASSOCIATED PRESS

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations human rights investigator called on Monday for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and senior officials to be prosecuted for committing crimes against humanity.

Marzuki Darusman said North Korea is devoting huge resources to developing nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction while many of its citizens lack sufficient food.

He was addressing the U.N. Human Rights Council at a session boycotted by the delegation of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The European Union and United States supported his call for accountability without naming the leader.

China, Pyongyang's ally, took a more conciliatory tone, saying human rights issues should not be politicized and calling for a comprehensive approach to dealing with North Korea.

North Korea Foreign Minister Ri Su Yong, in a speech to the Geneva forum on March 1, said it would boycott any session that examined its record and would "never, ever" be bound by any such resolutions.

Darusman, referring to his report issued last month, said: "I would like to reiterate my appeal to the international community to move forward to ensure accountability of the senior leadership of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, including that of Mr. Kim Jong Un."

This could be via the International Criminal Court (ICC) but failing consensus among major powers, North Korea's leadership could be prosecuted in a third country, he said.

Political prison camps, torture, "slave-like labor" and religious persecution remain features of the state apparatus, two years after a landmark U.N. investigation into crimes against humanity, Darusman said.

"The denial of human rights to its citizens internally and this aggressive behavior externally are basically two sides of the same coin. The country is pouring a large amount of resources into developing weapons of mass destruction, while large parts of its population continue to suffer from food insecurity...," he added.

North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in January, followed by its launching of a long-range missile the following month.

Robert King, U.S. envoy on the DPRK, said that the Obama administration "strongly supports the call for accountability."

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Before You Go

Kim Jong-Un: North Korea's Mysterious Master
(01 of12)
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In this undated image made from KRT video, North Korea's new young leader Kim Jong Un rides a horse at an undisclosed place in North Korea, aired Sunday, Jan. 8, 2012. (AP Photo/KRT via APTN) (credit:AP)
Kim Jong Un(02 of12)
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In this undated image made from KRT video, North Korea's new young leader Kim Jong Un appears from a military vehicle at an undisclosed place in North Korea, aired Sunday, Jan. 8, 2012. Kim Jong Un, who was named "supreme leader" of North Korea's people, ruling Workers' Party and military following the death last month of his father, Kim Jong Il, was shown observing firing exercises and posing for photographs with soldiers in footage that was shot before his father's death and aired as a documentary Sunday. (AP Photo/KRT via APTN) (credit:AP)
(03 of12)
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In this Oct. 10, 2010 file photo Kim Jong Un, right, along with his father and North Korea leader Kim Jong Il, left, attends a massive military parade marking the 65th anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party in Pyongyang, North Korea. (AP Photo/Kyodo News, File) (credit:AP)
(04 of12)
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North Korea's next leader, Kim Jong Un, front center, salutes beside the hearse carrying the body of his late father and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il during the funeral procession in Pyongyang, North Korea Wednesday Dec. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) (credit:AP)
(05 of12)
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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks to tens of thousands before a mass military parade in Pyongyang's Kim Il Sung Square to celebrate 100 years since the birth of the late North Korean founder Kim Il Sung on Sunday, April 15, 2012. (AP Photo/David Guttenfelder) (credit:AP)
(06 of12)
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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrives for the unveiling ceremony for statues of late leaders Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung on Mansudae in Pyongyang, North Korea, Friday, April 13, 2012. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) (credit:AP)
(07 of12)
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In this Wednesday, July 25, 2012 photo released by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) and distributed in Tokyo by the Korea News Service Thursday, July 26, 2012, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, accompanied by his wife Ri Sol Ju, right, waves to the crowd as they inspect the Rungna People's Pleasure Ground in Pyongyang. (AP Photo/Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service) (credit:AP)
(08 of12)
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In this undated file photo released by the Korean Central News Agency and distributed in Tokyo by the Korea News Service, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, third from right, looks at food items as he inspects a military unit at an undisclosed location in North Korea. (AP Photo/KCNA via KNS, File) (credit:AP)
(09 of12)
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This picture taken by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on December 12, 2012 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un (lower L) celebrating with staffs from the satellite control center during the launch of the Unha-3 rocket, carrying the satellite Kwangmyongsong-3, at the general satellite control and command center in Pyongyang. (KNS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(10 of12)
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In this Feb. 28, 2013 file photo, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, left, and former NBA star Dennis Rodman watch North Korean and U.S. players in an exhibition basketball game at an arena in Pyongyang, North Korea. (AP Photo/VICE Media, Jason Mojica, File) (credit:AP)
(11 of12)
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In this March 7, 2013 file photo released by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) and distributed by the Korea News Service, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un uses a pair of binoculars to look at the South's territory from an observation post at the military unit on Jangjae islet, located in the southernmost part of the southwestern sector of North Korea's border with South Korea. (AP Photo/KCNA via KNS, File) (credit:AP)
(12 of12)
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In this March 11, 2013 file photo released by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) and distributed by the Korea News Service, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un rides on a boat, heading for the Wolnae Islet Defense Detachment, North Korea, near the western sea border with South Korea. (AP Photo/KCNA via KNS, File) (credit:AP)
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