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| North Korean men bow at the giant bronze statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-sung and his son Kim Jong-il during the commemoration of the 65th anniversary of the ceasefire armistice that ended the fighting in the Korean War, which the country celebrates as the day of "victory in the fatherland liberation war" at Mansu Hill Grand Monument in Pyongyang, North Korea, July 27. AP |
North Korea's media on Sunday denounced South Korea for participating in the passage of a U.N. resolution condemning the communist state's human rights abuses, despite ongoing trust-building efforts.
The U.N. passed the resolution at a Dec. 17 meeting of the U.N. General Assembly, marking the 14th consecutive year such a document has passed the global body. It criticized the "long-standing and ongoing systematic, widespread and gross violations of human rights" by the North.
"The South Korean authorities expressed support for the U.S.' anti-Pyongyang ploy to condemn the human rights situation," Uriminzokkiri, the North's external propaganda website, said, calling Seoul's participation a "doubled-faced attitude."
"In front (of us), (South Korea) talks of trust and harmony, while it follows the foreign forces' ploy behind our back," it added.
Maeari, another propaganda outlet, also excoriated the countries that joined the resolution, warning that the "followers of the U.S. will pay dearly for their provocative, malign acts."
Observers noted that the North's such rhetoric came from the external media rather than its official bodies, such as the foreign ministry or Rodong Sinmun, the daily of the North's ruling Workers' Party -- an indication that it intends to modulate the level of criticism to keep inter-Korean cooperation alive.
After the annual passage of the resolution, Seoul's foreign ministry said that it supported the resolution from the basic position of making joint efforts with the international community for "substantive improvement" in the human rights of North Korean people.
The adoption of the resolution came amid Seoul's efforts to reduce military tensions and build mutual confidence with Pyongyang through a series of measures, such as conventional arms control.
Seoul believes that such efforts can catalyze ongoing diplomacy to denuclearize the North and establish a lasting peace regime on the divided peninsula. (Yonhap)
