You can't look at North Korea from a Western perspective... Religion needs to play a humanitarian role. North Korean human rights are considered the worst in the world, but good results can be obtained if the end of the war and a declaration of peace are pursued. After the UN sanctions, we need to help the children that are dying because of lack of food. Religious role: Instead of approaching the North Korean human rights issue with hostility what is needed is mercy and love— dialogue between the North and South.
On the first day, North Korean human rights were dealt with from the perspective of the international community. The presenters all agreed on the importance of human rights itself, but they showed a difference of opinion in approaching human rights in North Korea.
The first presentation was made by a Georgetown University professor. He emphasized the universality of human rights in the light of Catholic social doctrine, and said the concept of human rights can be applied in various ways to suit each country's situation. He was of the position that the view of human rights in the East, which has a communal character, should be recognized rather than viewed only from the Western perspective. However, he was cautious about human rights in North Korea. He said: The human rights situation in North Korea can be classified as the worst situation in the world. Nevertheless, he said that now is the time to put an end to the war between North Korea, the United States and the United Nations. He suggested that the Korean church needed to build connections and friendly relationships so that they could carry out forward-looking strategies on human rights and exchanging with private human rights advocacy groups.
The second presentation was made by a professor from the University of London. She looked at human rights in North Korea from the perspective of the right to life. She said: "The most pressing issue in North Korea is the right to life," and analyzed the North Korean food crisis from the great famine of 1990 to the present. According to her North Korea's agricultural production recovered significantly from the mid-2000s to 2017, and children's nutritional status improved significantly. However, in 2018, a food crisis arose again, citing UN sanctions against North Korea in 2017 as the cause. North Korea, which relies entirely on imports, suffered a severe blow to agriculture as oil and natural gas were cut off, resulting in a food shortage. As a role that the church can play in this situation, it is suggested that humanitarian assistance through cooperation with Caritas International and maintaining a dialogue window with North Korea should be maintained.
Finally, a professor emeritus, from the university of Georgia gave a presentation. He pointed out that "powerful countries such as the United States are demonizing and isolating North Korea with Western values," and pointed out that the view of North Korea itself is biased. He argued that we must understand the unique situation of North Korea, which moves as a group, and that we must acknowledge diversity. He further emphasized that North Korea should be recognized as a normal state and that North Korea should be able to improve itself in terms of human rights. He also said, "Human rights should be an end in itself, not a tool." He also said that religion should not have a missionary goal, but we need an attitude that can help North Korean children by feeling hunger together with them and want to help them.
On the second day, they looked at North Korean human rights issues from a religious point of view and sought solutions. A Protestant pastor gave the first presentation, emphasized the need for solidarity for reconciliation and cooperation above all else. The state, churches, and civic groups should share their roles as advocates and watchers to improve inter-Korean relations and improve the human rights of North Koreans.
The process of acknowledging North Korea as a dialogue partner and cooperation as a partner in the peace process must continue. In particular, he said, "The role of the church is to care about the least of the people because human rights ultimately start with the problem of one specific person."
Next, Pax Christi Korea shared about the role of the Catholic Church in improving human rights in North Korea. He explained: "North Korean human rights should be dealt with from various perspectives: internal issues in North Korea, inter-Korean relations, and international human rights issues."
In the discussion that followed people with different religions put their heads together on human rights issues in North Korea.
Two of the panelists pointed out: "The international community considers itself to be a fresh apple, and treat North Korea as a rotten apple because it tastes different like an orange." They argued that the North Korean human rights issue should not be seen as a means to achieve international order but should help North Koreans to solve them on their own.
On the other hand, anther participant took a more cautious approach. "There is intervention from the outside on the the North Korean issue because it is difficult to resolve internally, but it is by no means a simple issue. He added: "It is a time that the wisdom of the religious world and humanitarian perspective needs to be added."
A Buddhist monk emphasized the need to actively help the North to survive, while taking a strong stance that there is no sovereignty in a dictatorship. He said: "The idea and practice of wanting people to eat three meals a day in North Korea is the most realistic way to help." He also stressed this was to be done without any evangelizing motivation.
A professor introduced the activities of Chondoism (a 20th-century Korean Pantheistic religion), that actively participated in the March 1st Movement and said that North Korea's human rights issue should be approached by the the North independently rather than relying on external forces.
