Lenah
Follow us
Justice Hub
  • My Justice
  • News
  • Insights
  • Justice Explained
  • About Us
No Result
View All Result
Justice Hub
  • My Justice
  • News
  • Insights
  • Justice Explained
  • About Us
No Result
View All Result
Justice Hub
No Result
View All Result

Will North Korea be referred to the ICC?

November 16, 2014
in News
0
0
Home News
FacebookTwitterLinkedInWhatsappEmail

By Niklas Jakobsson

There is always something about North Korea in the media, whether it was the immortality of Kim Il-Sung, Kim Jong Il’s fear of flying or Kim Jong-un’s love of basketball. But within the last couple of  months, and last week in particular, the human rights violations taking place in North Korea on a daily basis have been pushed into the limelight.

The UN is just a few weeks away from a vote that could seek to refer North Korea to the International Criminal Court. So are we expecting Kim Jong-un to visit The Hague?

The ‘North Korea to ICC’ movement has been gaining traction because of a relentless push by the European Union and Japan. But what’s been even more surprising is the so-called ‘charm offensive’ that North Korea has been on since this movement really came to life. A UN investigator stated that there is more than enough evidence to hold leader Kim Jong-un accountable for human rights violations. Is the country which was previously afraid of no-one becoming scared of the ICC?

In a blog-post for Brookings, Paul Park and Katharine H.S. Moon argue that there is one major goal that emerges from the ‘charming’ side of North Korea.

“Easing international pressure on its atrocious human rights abuses is one major goal.”

History has shown us that North Korea can be more elusive than Joseph Kony, when it comes to commenting on its human rights abuses. But Koh Yoo-hwan, a North Korea expert at Dongguk University, who was quoted in the Korea Herald, believes that a new era lies ahead for the reclusive dictatorship.

“In the past, the North used to shrug off the international criticism of its human rights situation by denying any violations or turning a blind eye to it. But it has recently been very active in easing the pressure by publishing its official report on human rights and actively explaining its rights policy.”

Mark Kersten, the founder of Justice in Conflict, believes that it is not a fear of the international justice organ that has pushed Kim Jong-un to be more charming than his father and grandfather combined. Instead, the totalitarian leader is thinking strategically, fearing the political ramifications of a referral rather than the legal ones.

“Kim Jong-un fears the politics of the Court and, in particular, how referrals can tilt the international political landscape via selective enforcement and endorsement of the ICC by states.”

Voices have been raised that North Korea is approaching the situation in a frantic or even desperate fashion. But Clint Richards, in an article for The Diplomat, thinks we should give it a bit of time before calling North Korea’s actions ‘frantic’.

“It is perhaps too early to say Pyongyang’s actions are frantic, or that the resolution before the U.N. is giving the U.S. or anyone else unexpected leverage.”

So asking the question: ‘What drives the North Korean charm-offensive?’, Mark Kersten comes up with an interesting, and cheesy, answer.

“But this is a young leader who clearly cares about Swiss cheese, ski resorts and meeting Chinese leader Xi Jinping one day. This is also a regime that needs Western states to continue the status quo song-and-dance of threatening nuclear action and then getting rewarded. All of the above becomes more difficult if the UN system staples the idea of an ICC referral onto the name of North Korea.”

But what if all this effort is completely unrelated to an ICC referral? In an article for Asia Times Online, Joseph R. DeTrani argues that Pyongyang is trying to charm the socks off the rest of the world for financial reasons.

“The North is more isolated now and is hurting economically from United Nations-imposed sanctions, some imposed in response to Kim Jung-un’s escalation of tension.”

Whether socks will come off ahead of the UN vote or not, we are writing a new chapter on North Korea and its relationship with the rest of the world. How this plays out, and the reasons behind it, are questions for historians to answer in the coming decades.

So…

  • Do you think North Korea is afraid of an ICC referral?
  • Is the North Korean ‘charm offensive’ an act of desperation?
  • How much is this a political issue rather than a legal one?

Sergii Fedko is a Ukrainian cartoonist who works for Cartoon Movement

The Weekly Hubble features the most popular or controversial international justice story of the past week and reactions on social media to the news. 

Tags: human rightsICC (International Criminal Court)Justice News
ShareTweetShareSendSend

Justice Hub

Justice Hub is an online platform connecting conversations about international justice.

Related Posts

ICL Media Review: Russian veterans seek ICC investigation into use of mercenaries in Syria
ICL Media Review

ICL Media Review: Russian veterans seek ICC investigation into use of mercenaries in Syria

by ICL Media Review
November 18, 2019
0
26

In this week's review, news about the ECCC conviction of Chea and Samphan for genocide, the adjournment of Kwoyelo’s trial...

Read more
NPWJ: Trump’s Transgender Military Ban Gets a Boost

NPWJ: Trump’s Transgender Military Ban Gets a Boost

January 24, 2019
42
ICL Media Review: Charles Taylor’s ex-wife pleads not guilty in UK trial on torture in Liberia

ICL Media Review: Charles Taylor’s ex-wife pleads not guilty in UK trial on torture in Liberia

January 24, 2019
38
ICL Media Review: Uganda ordered to compensate former LRA fighter Thomas Kwoyelo

ICL Media Review: Uganda ordered to compensate former LRA fighter Thomas Kwoyelo

January 24, 2019
29
NPWJ: European Parliament to hold hearing on the current human rights and humanitarian situation in Yemen

NPWJ: European Parliament to hold hearing on the current human rights and humanitarian situation in Yemen

January 22, 2019
45

Justice Hub

Justice Hub is an online platform connecting conversations about international justice.

Justice Hub

Justice Hub is an online platform aimed at a worldwide audience of 18-35 year olds, especially in countries where people are looking for sustainable and innovative solutions to problems of justice, peace and security. Justice can feel too abstract, too often owned by experts. We make the conversations lively and accessible.

Follow Us

Quick Links

  • Featured
  • My Justice
  • News
  • Insights
  • Justice Explained
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy

 

  HPPJ Forum Login
Creative Commons Licence
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
No Result
View All Result
  • My Justice
  • News
  • Insights
  • Justice Explained
  • About Us

© 2018 Justice Hub

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Fill the forms bellow to register

*By registering into our website, you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Login

Lost password?
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.

REPUBLISHING TERMS

You may republish this article online or in print under our Creative Commons license. You may not edit or shorten the text, you must attribute the article to Aeon and you must include the author’s name in your republication.

If you have any questions, please email nsharafa@gmail.com

License

Creative Commons License AttributionCreative Commons Attribution
Will North Korea be referred to the ICC?