U.S. rights envoy vows continued pressure on N. Korea

SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Yonhap) -- Robert King, special U.S. envoy for North Korean human
rights, on Thursday said his country will continue to pressure the communist
nation to improve conditions for its people, also noting the U.S. will not
normalize ties with a country that systematically abuses the rights of its
people.

"Human rights conditions will not be improved overnight. But there is a need to
continuously apply pressure for an improvement, and we must have patience in the
process," King said through Korean interpreters in a Web chat hosted by the U.S.
Embassy here.
The U.S. envoy arrived here Sunday on his first visit since taking his post about
six weeks ago.
Following a Monday meeting with South Korea's Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan, the
U.S. envoy said the conditions in North Korea are "appalling" and called North
Korea one of the worst places "in terms of lack of human rights."
North Korea strongly denies its dismal human rights conditions, often attacking
the U.S. as the worst human rights violator in the world.
King said his country does not use the human rights issue as a stick to attack
its enemies or unfriendly nations, but noted that the North will have to make
progress in the area if it wishes to establish positive, productive relations
with the U.S.
"The United States supports human rights of people in all countries. We are not
singling out North Korea, and we have worked to improve human rights conditions
in many other countries," he said.
Washington appointed its first North Korean rights envoy and King's predecessor,
Jay Lefkowitz, in 2005 under its North Korea Human Rights Act that annually
provides millions of dollars to organizations working to improve human rights
conditions in North Korea, including U.S.-based radio stations that send
broadcasts into the communist nation.
King said such broadcasts are important because they allow North Korean people to
know what is happening in other free countries outside of their reclusive
homeland.
"Communication is one of the most important issues in that it allows North Korean
people to make their own decisions," he said.
Earlier Thursday, King met with the special U.N. rapporteur on North Korean human
rights, Vitit Muntarbhorn, who was also on a visit here from Monday, to exchange
and discuss their views on conditions in North Korea.
The U.S. envoy earlier noted he made Seoul his first destination overseas since
his appointment to show that Washington and Seoul are working together closely to
help improve human rights conditions in the North.
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)