Human Rights

The Korea Economic Institute of America (KEI), with the generous support of the Korea Foundation, organized six “Vision Group” roundtable conversations with leading American scholars and commentators to discuss the…

KEI’s 2020 Report on American Attitudes Toward the Korean Peninsula focuses on U.S. views on relations with South Korea, U.S. awareness of South Korean brands and cultural products, and views…

The states of Southeast Asia are on the front lines of competition not only in regard to the balance of military and political power, as analyzed in Section I, but…

Although coercion is a key element in the governing strategy of the North Korean party-state, the authorities in Pyongyang do not hold political power at the barrel of a gun…

By Jenna Gibson Life in North Korea is largely unknown to much of the outside world. The following five documentaries provide insight into the lives of North Koreans and the challenges faced by those who try to escape. 1. Under the Sun (Available on Netflix) This is Pyongyang, presented virtually without comment.  By Russian documentarian…

By Troy Stangarone Under Kim Jong-un North Korea has continued to commit a wide range of human rights violations including political and religious discrimination, forced abductions, rape, and murder. These and other violations of the North Korean people’s rights have been well documented by both the UN Commission of Inquiry’s (COI) report and the continuing…

By Greg Scarlatoiu Since the days of the great famine, for more than two decades, 30,000 North Koreans escaped and resettled in South Korea. Others have resettled in other countries, including 211 in the United States by the end of 2016. They have been the heroes of the movement. Their testimony has informed investigators and…

By Greg Scarlatoiu The crimes against humanity and other shocking human rights violations committed by North Korea’s Kim regime have received more attention after the February 2014 report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on human rights in the DPRK. In the 21st century, North Korea continues to be the only country on the face…