북한인권법 제정의 필요성에 대한 고찰 - 북한인권기록보존소 설치의 필요성을 중심으로 -

Abstract

After the 18th National Assembly of ROK, four North Korean Human Rights Acts are in the discussion at the 19th National Assembly as well and the opposing parties are pitted against each other on the issue, especially setting up the record center for human rights violations in North Korea. However, West Germany already started ‘Central record center for human rights violations in East Germany’ and recorded forty thousand cases until reunification. The center performed well the role of reducing the violations by warning the perpetrators in the East Germany. We need to set up North Korean Human Rights Act, especially the record center for human rights violations in North Korea as follows. First of all, the Act will have an effect on reduction of human rights violations in long-term point of view and it will also play an important role in dealing with the unlawfulness of North Korean government after unification of Korea. Second, the Act is not a matter of intervention in the domestic affairs of another country according to the universality of human rights after the second world war, the U. N. charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and especially under the constitution of ROK and the Inter-Korean Basic Agreement between the North and South Korea in 1992. Third, even though the Act and the recording center may strain South-North relations in the short term, it will not be the fundamental interruption factor in the light of the fact that after the sinking of the Cheonan Navy Ship and North Korea’s attack on Yeonpyeong Island,the cooperation in the Kaesong Industrial Complex continued by the economic need of the North Korea. Fourth, it is improper to approach to the problem of human rights violations in North Korea from the view point of distinguishing between the right to freedom and the right to life. Most of all, human right policy need to be promoted simultaneously with the exchange and cooperation between North-South Korea because the protection and promotion of human rights should be the ultimate goal pursued by the United Korea. As we should be able to answer North Korean people’s question ‘What did you do when we were starving?’, we also should be able to answer the question ‘What did you do when we were persecuted?’