North Korea's human rights issue most divisive for South Korea, US

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By Kang Seung-woo

During last week's phone conversation between President Moon Jae-in and President Joe Biden, the two agreed to "comprehensively" work together on North Korea.

However, it might not be too long before the new U.S. president could find himself disagreeing with South Korea's policy of championing inter-Korean engagement ahead of pressuring Pyongyang on human rights ― a concerning sign that the different stance on this issue may result in cracks in their cooperation and furthermore, bilateral relations.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump neglected North Korea's human rights violations over the past four years for fear of derailing his nuclear negotiations with Kim Jong-un whose regime considers United Nations resolutions on the North's human rights a serious provocation. This neglect served as a de facto green light for the Moon administration to also put the issue on the shelf.

But, given that the Biden administration is seeking to carry out human rights- and democracy-oriented policies toward the totalitarian state, it is highly likely that Washington may clash with Seoul's pursuit of inter-Korea detente, diplomatic experts say.

According to Voice of America, the new U.S. government is reviewing appointing a special envoy on North Korean human rights ― a rewind to the pre-Trump era and a sign that the issue will be part of its policy toward Pyongyang. The post has been vacant since Robert King left the job in January 2017, largely due to Trump ignoring the matter.

The rapid review is in a sharp contrast to the South Korean government's moves regarding the human rights issue.

The Moon administration has yet to appoint an ambassador-at-large on North Korean human rights since the term of its inaugural Ambassador Lee Jung-hoon ended in September 2017 despite the international community's criticism of its few efforts to publicize North Korean human rights violations.

In addition, the government is also under fire for being slow to establish the North Korean Human Rights Foundation pursuant to the North Korean Human Rights Act, which came into effect in September 2016. The organization is aimed at conducting inquiries and developing policies on promoting human rights in the North.

Bruce Klingner, a former CIA analyst and senior researcher at the Heritage Foundation, said the Biden administration's appointment of a human rights ambassador will signal a more comprehensive policy toward Pyongyang based on strategic objectives.

"The Moon administration, like its progressive predecessors, minimizes its criticism of North Korean human rights violations as well as other regime transgressions. This has been coupled with efforts to restrain South Korean freedom of speech in attempts to improve inter-Korean relations. Pyongyang, however, continues to threaten, insult and ignore Seoul," he said.

"The Biden administration will likely drop Trump's demand to make a profit off of stationing U.S. forces in Korea, which should remove a major bilateral irritant. However, differences between Washington and Seoul on North Korea policy, as well as the pace of OPCON transition, may cause some strains in the alliance."

Park Won-gon, a professor of international politics at Handong Global University, said, "The issue of North Korea's human rights is the most concerning part between South Korea and the U.S. as President Biden has strongly stressed the matter. Although the Biden administration is not likely to take issue with the South Korean government's negligence in public, it could be a sticking point in their cooperation on dealing with issues involving North Korea."

"The Biden administration is highly anticipated to appoint a special envoy on North Korean human rights and the South Korean government at least needs to keep pace with the U.S. step," he added.

Shin Beom-chul, the director of the Center for Diplomacy and Security at the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy, said the government is required to coordinate with the U.S. on the human rights issue.

"As the Biden administration is seeking a two-track approach of pressure on and dialogue with North Korea, the Moon administration should coordinate on dealing with North Korea with the U.S. side," he said.

"Rather than saying it opposes the appointment of a special envoy, the government should say the allies need to coordinate on the human rights ambassador in order not to adversely affect the pursuit of its peace initiative."

However, Ramon Pacheco Pardo, an associate professor of international relations at King's College London, said potential differences regarding human rights issues in North Korea will not prevent cooperation.

"Rightly or wrongly, denuclearization is a greater priority for both Moon and, especially, Biden. Thus, if there is an opportunity to sign a deal with North Korea on denuclearization, none of them will let the opportunity go due to human rights," he said.

"The means, however, appear to be different. The Moon government sees inter-Korean reconciliation as a way to improve the human rights situation in North Korea. It looks like the Biden administration is going to be more upfront and vocal about this issue. I think that it might be possible to strike a balance between both approaches."

Pardo also said the consultation process between the Moon and Biden administrations will allow human rights to become part of the discussion and therefore not significantly affect South Korea-U.S. cooperation on the broader North Korea issue.

"Plus, the U.S. has many other matters with which it wants cooperation with South Korea, such as dealing with China, expanding the G7, or multilateral government negotiations. So even if there are differences with regards to the human rights situation of ordinary North Koreans, I don't think that this will significantly affect South Korea-U.S. relations," he added.