The human rights situation in North Korea
is one that has been documented many times
over.
It's a dire situation for many who live in
the communist state and is the focus of efforts
not only by the United Nations but South Korea
as well.
Ahead of International Women's Day,... North
Korean defectors have stepped forward to share
important testimonies about the alarming state
of women's rights under the current regime.
Park Ji-won has more.
The New Korea Women's Union,... an association
of North Korean defectors,... held a press
conference on Monday in central Seoul,...
to testify to the appalling women's rights
situation in North Korea.
The women, of all ages, representing the spectrum
of working class North Koreans,... gave detailed
accounts of human rights infringements committed
under the Kim Jong-un regime.
Kim Eun-mi used to work on a train in North
Korea.
She said that women crew members faced sexual
assault and rape, which was rampant in trains
carrying soldiers,... especially when lights
were turned off in the evenings.
Security officers on the trains also demanded
sexual favors from young, female passengers
who were caught during checks.
Former North Korean army nurse Choi Su-hyang,...
who left the country in 2014 pointed out that
30 to 40-percent of the North's military personnel
are women,... and they too were raped and
assaulted by superior officers.
She added most military soldiers, both men
and women, suffer from general malnutrition,
and are at high risk of contracting diseases
like hepatitis and tuberculosis.
Chung Hyun-jung is a former North Korean worker
who was dispatched to China....
She defected in 1999.
According to Chung, about 48-thousand women
sent to work in China's service industry,
including restaurants,... and only receive
about a third of a Chinese workers' regular
salary.
On top of that, 90-percent of their pay went
directly to the North Korean government.
Often three workers had to share a small room...
and mandatory group surveillance among roommates
was put in place to prevent defection.
The women's human rights group denounced the
North Korean regime,... calling it is an abnormal
state that infringes women's rights,... and
vowed to continue monitoring the situation
in the North.
Currently, about 27-thousand North Korean
defectors reside in South Korea,... and some
80 percent of them are women.
Park Ji-won, Arirang News.
