COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS BEGINS CONSIDERATION OF SECOND PERIODIC REPORT OF REPUBLIC OF KOREA

CESCR
25th session
30 April 2001
Afternoon




The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights this afternoon opened its examination of the second periodic report of the Republic of Korea on how that country is implementing the rights and freedoms guaranteed in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
A Government delegation told the Committee Experts that the Republic of Korea was a country in transition -- an economic transition to a market economy, and a socio-political transition to a mature democracy. But successes were being seen, and accomplishments had been made. Further, lessons were learned from mistakes and shortcomings in the past.

Kyung-wha Kang, the Deputy Director-General for International Organizations within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, told the Committee that, like many other Asian countries, the Republic of Korea was struck by a severe financial crisis in late 1997. It was the result of decades of irregularities and corrupt practices that had come to characterize much of the financial and corporate sectors in the country. Thus, upon inauguration, the Government of President Kim Dae-Jung had embarked upon a programme of bold reforms to restructure the economy and to strengthen democratic values and market practices among all the economic players. The reforms were worked out with the International Monetary Fund as part of the terms of its rescue loans.

Further, Ms. Kang described last year's first summit of the two Koreas which was aimed at reconciliation and cooperation. The historic breakthrough was the result of two-and-a-half years of consistent and patient efforts on the part of the Government to engage the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in dialogue. Without freeing the country from the threat of another war, a peaceful and prosperous future in which the people could fully enjoy their rights could not be assured.

The delegation also included Eui-yong Chung, Permanent Representative of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea; Dal-ho Chung, Director-General for International Organizations within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade; Gil-sou Shin, Counsellor at the Permanent Mission; Seung-cheol Han, Counsellor at the Permanent Mission; Chang-jin Moon, Counsellor at the Permanent Mission; Hun-soo Kim, Director of Planning and Budget Division within the Ministry of Labor; Ki-soon Lee, Director of Women's Rights Planning Division within the Ministry of Gender Equality; Kang-il Huh, First Secretary at the Permanent Mission; Sung-ki Yi, First Secretary at the Permanent Mission; Nak-young Oh, Deputy Director of Human Rights and Social Affairs Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade; Man-kee Min, Deputy Director of the Human Rights Division within the Ministry of Justice; Suk-kya Lee, Deputy Director of the International Cooperation Division within the Ministry of Health and Welfare; Hae-young Chung, Assistant Director of the International Cooperation Division within the Ministry of Labor; Yun-ye Cho, International Relations Office within the Ministry of Gender Equality; and Kyung-seo Park, Ambassador for Human Rights.

The Committee will reconvene at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 1 May to continue its review of the report of the Republic of Korea.


Report of the Republic of Korea

The second periodic report of the Republic of Korea (E/1990/6/Add.23) describes on an article-by-article basis how the country complies with the tenets and rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The report of the Republic of Korea, which acceded to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on 10 April 1990, details the legal and institutional policies it has initiated to promote human rights.

During the past few years, the report reads, the Republic of Korea has made continued efforts to build a more democratic society that is committed to justice and respect for human rights. They include an extension of the welfare entitlements for women and the handicapped, the reform of the Nationality Act to make the acquisition of nationality easier, better promotion of democracy through the extensive application of the principle of local autonomy, and the introduction of the Real-Name System in the financial and real estate sectors for the enhancement of economic fairness.

The report acknowledges that more remains to be done to ensure the full enjoyment of human rights. The Republic of Korea is striving continuously to improve the situation. The new Government, which was inaugurated on 25 February 1998, following the first peaceful transition of political power since the establishment of the Republic, is dedicated to strengthening the protection of human rights through its simultaneous pursuit of democracy and a market economy.


Introduction of Report

KYUNG-WHA KANG, Deputy Director-General for International Organizations within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, said her country, like many other Asian countries, was struck by a severe financial crisis in late 1997. The crisis seemed sudden, but actually it was in the making for a long time. It was the result of decades of irregularities and corrupt practices that had come to characterize much of the financial and corporate sectors in the country. Thus, upon inauguration, the Government of President Kim Dae-Jung had embarked upon a programme of bold reforms to restructure the economy and to strengthen democratic values and market practices among all the economic players. The reforms were worked out with the International Monetary Fund as part of the terms of its rescue loans. But they were what the country should have had undertaken years ago, but had been too complacent to do so.

Ms. Kang said Korea was a divided country, and the two sides, South and North, had lived in intense mutual distrust and enmity for the past half-century after fighting a brutal war against each other in the early 1950s. Last year, the first summit of the two Koreas was held to turn the course of events on the Korean peninsula toward reconciliation and cooperation. The historic breakthrough was the result of two-and-a-half years of consistent and patient efforts on the part of the Government to engage the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in dialogue. Without freeing the country from the threat of another war, a peaceful and prosperous future in which the people could fully enjoy their rights could not be assured.

As explained in the report, the Government had been endeavouring to enact a law to establish a national human rights commission in adherence with the 1991 Paris Principles, Ms. Kang said. The Government also had tried to nurture labour-management relations toward greater maturity and harmony. In particular, during the past three years, the country had endeavoured to build a culture of peaceful demonstrations and rallies. Tear gas as a means of riot control was discarded. While fully guaranteeing the right of labour unions and other groups to engage in peaceful, lawful demonstrations and rallies, the Government had been firm in dealing with the use of unlawful, violent means in collective action. Under 'productive social welfare,' the Government took steps to expand the social safety net. The national pension system had been reformed to extend coverage to almost all citizens not covered by other pension schemes, and to secure its long-term financial health. And noticeable advances had been made in rooting out gender discrimination and protecting women's rights in the Republic of Korea through a series of legal and institutional reforms.

Ms. Kang said the Republic of Korea was a country in transition at many levels -- an economic transition to a market economy and a socio-political transition to a mature democracy. Since coming to office, the present Government had striven to accelerate that transition. The task had not been easy. The economic crisis had consumed a great deal of energy and resources. But successes were being seen, accomplishments had been made, and lessons were learned from mistakes and shortcomings. It was hoped that the international commentary and contributions provided would help expand the scope of action in the Republic of Korea.


Discussion

Responding to questions that had previously been submitted by Committee Experts, the delegation answered that the Government had made substantial efforts to formulate a draft of the National Human Rights Commission Act that reflected public opinion to the broadest possible extent.

Asked about efforts to publicize the rights embodied in the Covenant, the delegation said, among other undertakings, the Government had published various human rights instruments, including treaties, declarations and charters, which were disseminated throughout schools, research institutes, universities, libraries, and government organs.

Concerning asylum-seekers who had applied for refugee status during the last five years, the delegation said 102 were seeking refugee status. There were 26 Congolese, 21 Burmese, 18 Algerians, 10 Iranians, five Afghans, four Liberians, four Pakistanis, three Iraqis and 32 belonging to other nationalities.

The delegation also said the Government had been making significant efforts to realize the ideals of gender equality in terms of various aspects of discrimination, modern or traditional.

Committee Experts asked further questions about the report, including how obligations in the Covenant were considered when negotiations were going on with the International Monetary Fund. Ms. Kang answered that all negotiations took place with full conformity of the Constitution, and that the principles and spirit of the Covenant were embedded in the Constitution, and thus, were upheld in negotiations with any international body.

Other Experts asked: if human rights education was compulsory in school; about the application of economic and social rights in the courts; about the country's failure to ratify the convention on forced labour and the two conventions on freedom of association; about the existence of a national human rights commission; about the rights of asylum-seekers; about protection for victims of violence; about the mechanisms that victims went to if their economic, social and cultural rights were violated; about the mechanisms available to women within the Ministry of Gender Equality; about recent statistics for domestic violence; if the recent financial crisis affected the employment situation for women; if the Covenant could be enforced without being incorporated into domestic law; about the situation of foreign workers in Korean society; and about the situation if an undocumented migrant worker married a Korean national.

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