November 30, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) cordially invites you to an event entitled "Crafting Strategies for the Free & Peaceful Unification of the Korean Peninsula."
It will be held on Thursday, November 30 from 09:30 to 11:30 a.m. ET at the DACOR Bacon House (1801 F Street NW, Washington, DC).
This event will address the current status of international efforts to improve North Korea's human rights situation, as well as the connection between human rights and the denuclearization of North Korea. The full schedule of events is enclosed below.
The event will be open to the press and on the record. Light refreshments will be served.
For media inquiries, please contact Greg Scarlatoiu at
[email protected].
If you have any questions about this event, please contact Raymond Ha at
[email protected].
(09:30 - 09:40) Introductory Remarks
Greg Scarlatoiu | HRNK Executive Director
Oh Dae-Seok | Director-General for Unification Planning, ROK Ministry of Unification
(09:40 - 10:30) Session 1: The UN COI, Ten Years Later
Roberta Cohen | HRNK Co-Chair Emeritus
Amb. Robert King | HRNK Board Member; former U.S. Special Envoy for North Korean Human Rights
Discussant: Olivia Enos | Senior Fellow, The Hudson
November 29, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) cordially invites you to a virtual event on North Korea's Expanding Reach: Security, Human Rights, and Global Implications.
This webinar will be held on Wednesday, November 29 at 10 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time | 4 p.m. Central European Time.
It will bring together legislators from the European Union, as well as security and human rights experts, to explore the connections between human rights violations in North Korea, its nuclear and missile programs, and its arms exports to the Middle East, Africa, and Russia. The program agenda is enclosed below.
The RSVP form for the event is at https://forms.gle/R28ySABdPtW3CiC77.
All registered attendees will receive a Zoom access link prior to the event.
For media inquiries, please contact Greg Scarlatoiu at
[email protected].
If you have any questions about this event, please contact Raymond Ha at
[email protected].
Welcoming Remarks
Witold Waszczykowski | Member of the European Parliament
[Part 1] Exporting Violence & Instability: Exploring the DPRK's Role in the War in Ukraine
Dr. Bruce E. Bechtol Jr. | Professor, Angelo State University
Dr. Duyeon Kim | Adjunct Senior Fellow, Center for a New American Security
Moderator: Dr. Oskar Pietrewicz | Senior Analyst, Polish In
November 28, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) cordially invites you to the rollout of its latest report, Propaganda and Agitation Department: Kim Jong-un Regime's Sword of Indoctrination by Robert Collins.
This report rollout will be held on Tuesday, November 28 at 09:30 a.m. ET at the DACOR Bacon House (1801 F Street NW, Washington, DC).
The event will begin with a keynote address by Amb. Julie Turner, the U.S. Special Envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues.
Robert Collins (HRNK Author & Senior Advisor) will then provide an overview of the report and discuss the role of the Propaganda and Agitation Department in the Kim Jong-un regime.
This will be followed by recorded remarks from Jieun Baek (Founder & Director, Lumen) and Nat Kretchun (Senior VP for Programs, Open Technology Fund).
David Maxwell (HRNK Board Member) and George Hutchinson (HRNK Author) will also serve as discussants.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, will moderate.
The event will be open to the press and on the record.
For media inquiries, please contact Greg Scarlatoiu at
[email protected].
If you have any questions about this event, please contact Raymond Ha at
[email protected].
October 17, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) cordially invites you to the rollout of a satellite imagery report concerning the Punggye-ri nuclear test facility and kwan-li-so (political prison camp) no. 16.
This online event will be held on Tuesday, October 17 at 10:00 a.m. ET via Zoom.
The event will begin with a presentation by Jacob Bogle, who will discuss the findings of a satellite imagery analysis concerning the two facilities. The accompanying report will be published on HRNK's website before the event. Bogle is a U.S.-based satellite imagery analyst and writer on North Korea with 11 years of experience. He runs the widely cited AccessDPRK blog and has written for NK News, 38 North, and Asia Times.
Ambassador Lee Shin-wha, the Republic of Korea's Ambassador-at-Large for International Cooperation on North Korean human rights, will then make remarks on the importance of using satellite imagery analysis to highlight the connection between security issues and human rights.
Raymond Ha, HRNK Director of Operations & Research, will also serve as a discussant.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, will moderate.
The event will be open to the press and on the record. For media inquiries, please contact Greg Scarlatoiu at
[email protected].
If you have any questions about this event, please contact Raymond Ha at
October 11, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) and the Young Leader Forum of the Korean Peninsula (YLFK) cordially invite you to "North Korean Human Rights: Moving Forward - the Role of the Young Generation in South Korea and the United States."
This hybrid event will be held on Wednesday, October 11 from 09:30 to 11:30 a.m. ET at the DACOR Bacon House in Washington, D.C. (1801 F St. NW).
The event will be streamed live on Zoom. Remote participants will receive the access information before the event.
This event will bring together young professionals from the Republic of Korea and the United States to share and discuss their experiences of working in the field of North Korean human rights and unification issues, as well as their perspectives on the ideas that young people in their respective countries have on these issues.
The full schedule of events is enclosed below. Light refreshments will be served. The event will be open to the press and on the record.
Moderator: Yi Jeenou (President, YLFK)
(09:30 - 09:40) Opening Remarks
Ambassador Lee Shin-wha, ROK Ambassador-at-Large for North Korean human rights (recorded)
(09:40 - 10:25) Session 1: Young Leader Forum of the Korean Peninsula
Yi Jeenou (President): "Awareness of N. Korean Human Rights among S. Korean Youth & Policy Priorities"
Park Junkyu (Advisor & former Presiden
September 22, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) cordially invites you to a discussion about North Korean refugees in China, with an emphasis on the situation of women refugees and the ongoing crisis of forced repatriation.
This event will be held on Friday, September 22 at 3:30 p.m. at the DACOR Bacon House in Washington, D.C.
The event will feature testimony from two North Korean escapees. Soyeon Lee, the CEO of the New Korea Women's Union and a former North Korean military officer, will participate as a discussant.
There will also be a screening of a 15-minute introduction to Beyond Utopia, a documentary about North Korean escapees that features Ms. Lee.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, will moderate the discussion. This event will be held in person and open to the press.
The New Korea Women's Union (link) is an organization that aims to uphold the human rights of North Korean escapee women and to assist their resettlement in South Korea. It seeks to raise awareness in South Korea and abroad about the human rights situation in North Korea, primarily through the testimonies of escapee women.
September 20, 2023
The full schedule of events & speakers may be viewed at this link.
September 19, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) hosted a conversation with Lawrence Peck, who discussed the impact of North Korea's influence & subversion operations on human rights defenders. This event was held on Tuesday, September 19 at 9:30 a.m. at the DACOR Bacon House in Washington, D.C.
Lawrence Peck holds a B.A. in Political Science from UCLA and a J.D. from Loyola Law School. He serves as an advisor to the North Korea Freedom Coalition. He lived and worked in South Korea for almost six years as a consultant to major Korean business groups.
Peck is a leading authority on the pro-North Korean movement in the United States. He has researched, monitored, and exposed the views and activities of pro-North Korean groups and activists in the United States for over two decades. In his presentation, he explained the nature, scope, and activities of pro-North Korean forces, including their lobbying efforts and opposition to the work of North Korean human rights groups.
Nicholas Eberstadt, the Henry Wendt Chair in Political Economy at the American Enterprise Institute and a HRNK Board Member, participated as a discussant.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, moderated the discussion.
August 15, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) has the pleasure to invite you to a conversation with Dr. Elizabeth Salmón, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the DPRK. This event will be held on Tuesday, August 15 at 3pm at the DACOR Bacon House in Washington, D.C.
Dr. Elizabeth Salmón was appointed as the first female Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea by the Human Rights Council on 1 August in 2022. Ms. Salmón is a Professor of International Law at the Faculty of Law of the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru. She is also Executive Director of the Institute for Democracy and Human Rights of the same university (IDEHPUCP). She holds a Ph.D. in International Law from the University of Seville.
Professor Salmón was a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council Advisory Committee and a Consulting Expert of the Colombian Special Jurisdiction for Peace. She has acted as a consultant to the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Defense of Peru, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Peru, the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross. She also participates as a speaker in numerous seminars, conferences and events around the world and she is the author of several publications in Public International Law, International Human Rights Law, International Criminal Law, International Humanitarian Law and Transitional Justice.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, will moderate the discussion. This event will be held in person. It will be on-the-record and open to the press.
If you have any que
July 24, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) has the pleasure to invite you to Harmony Across Borders, a performance & lecture by Mr. Hyung-Joon Won, at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, July 24 at the DACOR Bacon House in Washington, D.C.
Mr. Won is a South Korean violinist celebrated for his musicianship and activism. In 2019, he held two historic joint concerns with the North Korean soprano Song-mi Kim at the Oriental Art Center in Shanghai and the Musikaliska in Stockholm. He serves as the Musical Director of the Lindenbaum Festival Orchestra and the Chief Representative of Soundwith.
This event will begin with a short solo performance by Mr. Won, followed by a lecture entitled "North Koreans Have the Right to Express Their Music!" Mr. Won will share his experiences of organizing the joint inter-Korean concert in 2019, followed by a Q&A session. Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, will moderate the event.
May 18, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK), the Hoover Institution, and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) have the pleasure to invite you to a full-day conference entitled "North Korean Human Rights: Is There Still a Way Forward?" on Thursday, May 18 at NED.
As North Korea continues to advance its nuclear and missile capabilities, this conference will examine the human rights situation in the country and explore how human rights issues may be elevated in future bilateral & multilateral interactions with Pyongyang.
The full program agenda is enclosed below.
The welcome & opening remarks and the first session will be livestreamed online at https://www.ned.org/events/north-korean-human-rights-is-there-still-a-way-forward/.
Program Agenda
8:45 a.m. | Welcome and Opening Remarks
- Damon Wilson, President and CEO, NED
- Dr. Larry Diamond, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution; Mosbacher Senior Fellow in Global Democracy, Freeman Spogli Institute for Int'l Studies at Stanford University
- Greg Scarlatoiu, Executive Director, HRNK
9:15 a.m. | Refugees, Prison Camps, and the Chinese Dimension
- The Hon. Roberta Cohen, Co-Chair Emeritus, HRNK
- Dr. Tara O, Adjunct Fellow, Hudson Institute
- Ethan Hee-Seok Shin, Researcher, Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG)
- Moderator: Olivia Enos
March 29, 2023
HRNK will be featuring its latest report, The Root of All Evil: Money, Rice, Crime & Law in North Korea by Joshua Stanton.
The Root of All Evil examines the record of UN and U.S. sanctions implementation against North Korea, and it "proposes a long-term, multilateral legal strategy...to find, freeze, forfeit, and deposit the proceeds of the North Korean kleptocracy into international escrow."
"By forfeiting misspent funds and disbursing them for humanitarian purposes," Stanton argues, "a coalition [of like-minded nations] can compel Kim Jong-un to make better decisions with the wealth that rightfully belongs to the North Korean people."
The report launch will be conducted virtually, via Zoom, at 5:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time (ET) on Wednesday, March 29.
Access information will be shared with confirmed participants the day prior to the event.
The event will be open to the press and on-the-record.
Please click on this link to RSVP.
Presenter: Joshua Stanton
Author, The Root of All Evil: Money, Rice, Crime & Law in North Korea
Discussants:
Soo Kim
Practice Area Lead, LMI
William Newcomb
Former Member, UN Panel of Experts on DPRK Sanctions
Moderated by: Greg Scarlatoiu
Executive Director, HRNK
March 19, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK), the International Bar Association (IBA), and the Center for International Studies of the Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS) at Yonsei University have the pleasure to invite you to an event entitled Ten Years after the UN COI: Pressure Points and the Future of the North Korean Human Rights Movement.
The event, organized in cooperation with the CREDO Association and the Institute for National Security Strategy (INSS), will be held on Monday, March 20 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (Korea Standard Time) in a hybrid format: virtually on Zoom and in-person at Yonsei University in Seoul. This event is centered on both the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) and a Report published by HRNK and IBA (with pro bono assistance from the law firm of Debevoise & Plimpton), addressing crimes against humanity committed at North Korea’s detention centers.
A 12-minute mini-documentary produced by HRNK & the IBA on crimes against humanity in North Korea's detention centers will be played at the event. The event will also provide a forum for proposing a “human rights up front” approach to North Korea, 10 years after the establishment of the UN COI & 34 years after the end of the Cold War.
[Schedule of Events]
Welcoming Remarks (10:00-10:05 a.m.)
- Dean Lee Jung-Hoon, GSIS, Yonsei University
Opening Remarks (10:05-10:15 a.m.)
-
March 17, 2023
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) and the Permanent Mission of Australia to the United Nations have the pleasure to invite you to a side-event on “Investigating DPRK Human Rights, Ten Years after the UN COI: Satellite Imagery, Lines of Responsibility, Accountability” that will be held on Friday, 17th March 2023, 13:00-14:00 (Geneva time) in-person at Palais des Nations, Room XXII.
Ten years after the establishment of the UN Commission of Inquiry on human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), this event aims to highlight the human rights infringements and crimes against humanity perpetrated at DPRK detention facilities as well as the chain of command and control responsible for those violations in order to emphasize the importance of human rights accountability in the DPRK.
The event will feature remarks and briefings by ROK Ambassador-at-Large Shin-wha Lee, HRNK Senior Satellite Imagery Analyst Joseph S. Bermudez, Jr., HRNK Senior Advisor & Author Robert Collins, and Executive Director Greg Scarlatoiu, based on an ongoing HRNK investigation of DPRK detention facilities, which uses a methodology combining satellite imagery, witness testimony, and open-source research. The event will also feature three witnesses who experienced imprisonment in North Korea’s detention system.
March 14, 2023
The offices of MEP Michiel Hoogeveen and MEP Lukas Mandl (Chair of the European Parliament's Delegation for Relations with the Korean Peninsula - D-KOR), together with The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) have the pleasure to invite you to a side-event on “Investigating DPRK Human Rights, Ten Years after the UN COI: Satellite Imagery, Lines of Responsibility, Accountability” that will be held on Tuesday, 14th March 2023, 13:30-15:00 in-person – at the European Parliament in Strasbourg in WEISS S2.2.
At this event we will be joined by three North Korean defectors, who will give testimonies about their time in North Korean prison camps.
PROGRAMME:
Welcoming Remarks:
MEP Michiel Hoogeveen
Part 1: “DPRK Human Rights, Ten Years after the UN COI: Past, Present, Future”
Moderator: MEP Michiel Hoogeveen
Pierre Rigoulot, French historian and author of The Aquariums of Pyongyang
Greg Scarlatoiu, Executive Director, HRNK
Part 2: “Witnesses to Inhumanity: Satellite Imagery, Lines of Responsibility, Accountability”
Moderator: MEP Lukas Mandl
Joseph S. Bermudez, Jr., HRNK Senior Advisor (via live video link)
Robert Collins, HRNK Senior Advisor and Author
Jung Gwang-il, Chairman, No Chain for North Korea and survivor, Political Prison Camp No. 15 (Yoduk)
Two former North Korean women prisoners, Re-education through Forced Labor Camp No. 12 (Jongo-ri)
Part 3: Q&A Session
Modera
February 28, 2023
Dear Friends of HRNK,
We invite you to "One Decade Since the UN COI: Advocating for a Human Rights Up Front Approach," an event celebrating the tenth anniversary of UN Human Rights Council Resolution 22/13, which established, by consensus, the UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) on Human Rights in North Korea.
This event, hosted by HRNK, will be held at the DACOR Bacon House (1801 F St. NW, Washington, D.C.) on Tuesday, February 28, 2023 from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
This event will aim to: assess progress on North Korean human rights over the past decade; propose a "paradigm shift" that would place a "Human Rights Up Front" approach at the center of North Korea policy and interactions with North Korea, next to other critical issues; and assess the likelihood of Korean unification under a free, prosperous, democratic, capitalist Republic of Korea as the key to resolving the North Korean security & human rights conundrum.
An overview of the "Human Rights Up Front" approach to North Korea, published by the National Institute for Public Policy in January 2023, can be accessed at this link.
The schedule of events is enclosed below.
Welcoming Remarks (9:30-10:00 a.m.)
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director
H.E. Cho Tae-yong, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the United States
H.E. Lee Shin-wha, Republic of Korea Ambassador-at-Large for North Korean Human Rights (remote)
The Hon. Robert Joseph, HRNK Board Member & former Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security
[Session 1]
November 16, 2022
Dear Friends of HRNK,
You are kindly invited to participate in a hybrid lecture, "North Korea and its Regime," organized by the Dutch United Nations Student Association (SIB Amsterdam) and the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK).
The lecture will highlight HRNK's role as a North Korean human rights advocate, the Kim regime and Juche ideology, human rights violations in North Korea, and what can be done by the general public.
This hybrid event will be held on Wednesday, 16 November 1 PM (EST) / 7 PM (CET). The physical event will be hosted by SIB in Amsterdam, the Netherlands (UvA Roeterseilandcampus, Roetersstraat 11). It will also be live-streamed on Zoom.
For further information, please contact SIB Amsterdam at
[email protected].
October 28, 2022
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK), The Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights (JBI), the Permanent Mission of Lithuania to the United Nations, the Permanent Mission of the Czech Republic to the United Nations, and the European Union Delegation to the UN hosted a side-event, “Investigating the DPRK Human Rights: Satellite Imagery, Lines of Responsibility, Accountability” on Friday, 28th October 2022, 1:15-2:45 PM (EST) in a hybrid format: virtually on Zoom and in-person at the premises of the Permanent Mission of Lithuania to the UN.
This event highlighted the human rights infringements and crimes against humanity perpetrated at DPRK detention facilities as well as the chain of command and control responsible for those violations, in order to emphasize the importance of human rights accountability in the DPRK.
Following presentations by ROK Ambassador-at-Large Lee Shin-wha and UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the DPRK Dr. Elizabeth Salmón, the event featured briefings by HRNK Senior Advisors Joseph S. Bermudez, Jr. and Robert Collins, based on an ongoing HRNK investigation of DPRK detention facilities, which uses a methodology combining satellite imagery, witness testimony, and open-source research.
Over three decades since the end of the Cold War, the DPRK has persisted as an egregious human rights violator. In the third decade of the 21st century, the DPRK continues to run a system of political prison camps and other unlawful detention facilities. Up to 200,000 men, women, and children are imprisoned at the
DPRK’s political prison camps, pursuant to a feudal-inspired system of guilt-by-association, which punishes up to three generations for the perceived wrongdoing of one family member.
To this day, the DPRK continues to discriminate against its own c
September 26, 2022
On Monday, September 26, 2022, HRNK held a virtual launch of its latest report, North Korean Workers Officially Dispatched to China & Russia: Human Rights Denial, Chain of Command & Control by Greg Scarlatoiu, with Raymond Ha and Hyunseung Lee.
The report finds that "the working conditions at overseas worksites constitute forced, slave labor." In particular, "there are severe violations of the International Labor Organization's core Conventions and North Korea's own labor laws." The report also provides information about the situation of overseas workers in China & Russia during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as an outline of the chain of command & control that directs the official dispatch of overseas workers.
The report is available online at https://www.hrnk.org/uploads/pdfs/Overseas_Workers_0926.pdf.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, opened the event with an overview of the practice of dispatching North Korean workers overseas, along with a summary of HRNK's efforts to investigate the issue.
Raymond Ha, HRNK Director of Operations & Research, then provided an assessment of the gravity of labor standard violations affecting North Korea's overseas workers.
This was followed by Hyunseung Lee, HRNK Advisor and North Korea analyst, who gave a detailed presentation about how the North Korean regime manages and oversees the official dispatch of overseas workers.
The event concluded with a brief Q&A session.
Please click on the following link to view the video recording of the report launch: https://youtu.be/fSdjRB1pIXE
September 15, 2022
HRNK hosted the 18th General Meeting of the International Parliamentarians' Coalition for North Korean Refugees and Human Rights (IPCNKR) on Thursday, September 15 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m at the DACOR Bacon House.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, moderated the event.
Opening & Congratulatory Remarks
(9:00-9:30 a.m.)
The Hon. Ha Tae-keung, IPCNKR Chairperson & ROK National Assembly
The Hon. Damon Wilson, President & CEO, National Endowment for Democracy
The Hon. Hwang Woo-yea, IPCNKR Honorary Chairperson & former ROK Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs
Session 1: Promotion & Protection of Freedom of Opinion & Expression in N. Korea
(9:30-10:40 a.m.)
Jang Hyoek, former entrepreneur & defector from N. Korea
Dr. Baek Jieun, Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center
The Hon. Hong Suk-joon, ROK National Assembly
Kwon Eun-kyoung, Executive Director, NK Net
Session 2: Crimes Against Humanity in N. Korea & Accountability I
(11:00 a.m. - 12:20 p.m.)
The Hon. Nakagawa Masaharu, member of the House of Representatives, National Diet of Japan (remote)
The Hon. Futori Hideshi, member of the House of Representatives, National Diet of Japan
The Hon. Ji Seong-ho, ROK National Assembly
Choi Sung-yong, head of the Abductees' Family Union
The Hon. Park Sun-young, former member, ROK National Assembly
Luncheon (12:20-1:30 p.m.)
Session 3: Crimes Against Humanity in N. K