{"id":252,"date":"2010-12-02T11:00:16","date_gmt":"2010-12-02T11:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/minbyun.org\/english\/?p=252"},"modified":"2010-12-02T11:00:16","modified_gmt":"2010-12-02T11:00:16","slug":"submission-by-the-asian-legal-resource-center-to-the-hrcs-upr-in-rok-january-2008","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252","title":{"rendered":"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK–January 2008"},"content":{"rendered":"
Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Centre to the Human Rights Council\u2019s <\/strong><\/address>\n
Universal Periodic Review on human rights in the Republic of Korea
\n<\/strong>document id: ALRC-UPR-2-004-2008
\nHong Kong, January 2008<\/address>\n

1. The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), an NGO with general consultative
\nECOSOC status, wishes to make a brief, non-exhaustive submission concerning one
\nrecent and crucial human rights issue that has arisen in the days prior to the deadline
\nfor submissions to the Universal Periodic Review by the members of civil society.
\nWhile there are many issues that require the attention of the Human Rights Council
\nand the international community concerning the state of human rights in the Republic
\nof Korea, however, the ALRC wishes here to concentrate on one key issue – the
\ngrowing threats to the independence of the National Human Rights Commission of
\nKorea (NHRCK) \u2013 as this issue must be taken up without fail during the review
\nprocess if such threats materialise in the coming weeks.
\n2. A recommendation made by the Chairperson of the Presidential Transition
\nCommittee in mid-January to bring the National Human Rights Commission of Korea
\n(NHRCK) under the immediate control of the President currently threatens the
\nindependence of this commission. The commission was established in 2001 as the
\nresult of national consensus, in order to prevent the repetition of the human rights
\nviolations that had taken place during the country\u2019s military dictatorships in recent
\ndecades. The NHRCK is an important landmark in Korea\u2019s development as a
\ndemocracy. An attack on the independence of this commission will therefore be a
\nserious setback in the country\u2019s struggle for democracy and human rights.
\n3. On 16 January 2008, the Chairperson of the Presidential Transition Committee, Lee
\nKyung-sook, published a draft plan concerning the restructuring of the government’s
\norganizations, purportedly in order to streamline and increase the effectiveness of the
\nvarious government organs. The Committee is mandated to propose various practical
\nmeasures to be taken by the next administration when it is inaugurated in February.
\n4. Amongst several other plans, the Committee\u2019s draft states that the National Human
\nRights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) is to be under the immediate control of the
\nPresident. According to the Committee the three main reasons for this are:
\n\u2022 There are a large number of committees within the government and they
\nimpede responsible administration and prevent speedy decision making;
\n\u2022 Currently, the NHRCK violates the principle of separation of the three powers
\nstipulated by the Korean Constitution because the body has an independent
\nstatus and does not belong to the administration, the legislature or the
\njudiciary;
\n\u2022 The NHRCK has been evaluated as occupying too high a position and the
\nbody must therefore be placed under the Office of the President in order to
\nnormalise this situation.
\n5. The NHRCK was established on November 25, 2001 after a three year consultation
\nperiod with a wide range of sectors and actors in Korean society. Under the past
\nmilitary regime, the prosecution played a leading role in violating human rights and
\nthe judiciary did not fulfil its role to protect and promote human rights. Human rights
\nviolations that occurred during this time remain unresolved to date. With the
\nacknowledgment of this situation, the people participating in the discussion
\nconcerning the establishment of the NHRCK agreed to guarantee the body\u2019s
\nindependence from any of the country\u2019s institutional pillars.
\n6. The Act on the Establishment of the National Human Rights Commission provides
\nthe NHRCK with the authority to monitor human rights violations committed by the
\ncountry\u2019s law enforcement agencies. This monitoring also applies to the executive,
\nincluding the Office of the President. If the NHRCK is to be under the direct control
\nof the President, such monitoring will undoubtedly be hindered or even halted, and
\nthe body will likely be heavily politicised. The independence of national human rights
\ninstitutions is a requirement that is stipulated within the “Paris Principles” adopted by
\nGeneral Assembly resolution 48\/134 on December 1993. There is no doubt that the
\nindependence of such bodies is the cornerstone of their existence, effectiveness and
\nutility.
\n7. As mentioned above, the Presidential Transition Committee declared that one of its
\nreasons for suggesting the NHRCK be brought under the Presidential control is the
\nquestion of the “separation of three powers.” As it stands, the Committee argues that
\nthe NHRCK cannot remain outside these three constitutional powers, and must
\ntherefore be placed under one of them \u2013 in this case, the executive. This argument,
\nhowever, runs contrary to the Paris Principles and must therefore not be pursued. It is
\nvital for national human rights institutions to remain as independent organs that can
\nensure that international human rights norms and standards are respected by the three
\nconstitutional powers. Human rights are considered as being among the main
\nprinciples guiding the Korean Constitution and all of the government\u2019s institutions,
\nincluding the three powers – the legislature, executive and judiciary. The NHRCK
\nmust be independent from these in order to ensure that the Constitution is being
\nrespected in terms of the respect for human rights by the State.
\n8. The Asian Legal Resource Centre urges the various committees within the National
\nAssembly that will be evaluating this plan, to reject it, as it will be a significant step
\nbackwards for human rights if allowed to go ahead. In the case that the National
\nAssembly decides to place the NHRCK under the Office of the President, the ALRC
\ncalls on the government of President-elect of South Korea, Lee Myung-bak, to
\nimmediately begin a process of consultation and consensus-building with Korean
\ncivil society as soon as it comes to power. It is recalled that the NHRCK was created
\nas the result of a lengthy consultation process and that all stake-holders in this process
\nshould be consulted before any such radical changes to the system are made. If
\nKorean society opposes this plan, it must be abandoned.
\n9. The Asian Legal Resource Centre is gravely concerned about the above plans to
\nundermine the independence of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea.
\nSuch plans will hopefully be abandoned, but, if they were to be carried out, the ALRC
\ninsists that this issue be taken up as a central matter of concern within the Universal
\nPeriodic Review process.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Centre to the Human Rights Council\u2019s Universal Periodic Review on human rights in the Republic of Korea document id: ALRC-UPR-2-004-2008 Hong Kong, January 2008 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2153],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-252","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-other-ngo-voices"],"yoast_head":"\nSubmission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK-January 2008 - \ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"ko_KR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK-January 2008 - \ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Centre to the Human Rights Council\u2019s Universal Periodic Review on human rights in the Republic of Korea document id: ALRC-UPR-2-004-2008 Hong Kong, January 2008 […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-12-02T11:00:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"minbyun2024\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"\uae00\uc4f4\uc774\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"minbyun2024\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"\uc608\uc0c1 \ub418\ub294 \ud310\ub3c5 \uc2dc\uac04\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5\ubd84\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"minbyun2024\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3a884842e3e595d95b85df9b77707b9b\"},\"headline\":\"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK–January 2008\",\"datePublished\":\"2010-12-02T11:00:16+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252\"},\"wordCount\":1040,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"2. Documents from other NGOs\"],\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252\",\"name\":\"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK-January 2008 - \ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2010-12-02T11:00:16+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?p=252#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK–January 2008\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/\",\"name\":\"\ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"\ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/minbyun.s3.ap-northeast-2.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/26152700\\\/mb_ogimg1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/minbyun.s3.ap-northeast-2.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/26152700\\\/mb_ogimg1.png\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":630,\"caption\":\"\ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3a884842e3e595d95b85df9b77707b9b\",\"name\":\"minbyun2024\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/fabfa0a9da0db9cd55bf04b4a62bc00c6f11a6c5b4ea7208e472a40f425346b6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/fabfa0a9da0db9cd55bf04b4a62bc00c6f11a6c5b4ea7208e472a40f425346b6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/fabfa0a9da0db9cd55bf04b4a62bc00c6f11a6c5b4ea7208e472a40f425346b6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"minbyun2024\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/minbyun2024.mycafe24.com\\\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.minbyun.or.kr\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK-January 2008 - \ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252","og_locale":"ko_KR","og_type":"article","og_title":"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK-January 2008 - \ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784","og_description":"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Centre to the Human Rights Council\u2019s Universal Periodic Review on human rights in the Republic of Korea document id: ALRC-UPR-2-004-2008 Hong Kong, January 2008 […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252","og_site_name":"\ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784","article_published_time":"2010-12-02T11:00:16+00:00","author":"minbyun2024","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"\uae00\uc4f4\uc774":"minbyun2024","\uc608\uc0c1 \ub418\ub294 \ud310\ub3c5 \uc2dc\uac04":"5\ubd84"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252"},"author":{"name":"minbyun2024","@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#\/schema\/person\/3a884842e3e595d95b85df9b77707b9b"},"headline":"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK–January 2008","datePublished":"2010-12-02T11:00:16+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252"},"wordCount":1040,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#organization"},"articleSection":["2. Documents from other NGOs"],"inLanguage":"ko-KR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252","url":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252","name":"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK-January 2008 - \ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#website"},"datePublished":"2010-12-02T11:00:16+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"ko-KR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?p=252#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Submission by the Asian Legal Resource Center to the HRC's UPR in ROK–January 2008"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/","name":"\ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"ko-KR"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#organization","name":"\ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784","url":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"ko-KR","@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"http:\/\/minbyun.s3.ap-northeast-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/26152700\/mb_ogimg1.png","contentUrl":"http:\/\/minbyun.s3.ap-northeast-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/26152700\/mb_ogimg1.png","width":1200,"height":630,"caption":"\ubbfc\uc8fc\uc0ac\ud68c\ub97c \uc704\ud55c \ubcc0\ud638\uc0ac\ubaa8\uc784"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/#\/schema\/person\/3a884842e3e595d95b85df9b77707b9b","name":"minbyun2024","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"ko-KR","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fabfa0a9da0db9cd55bf04b4a62bc00c6f11a6c5b4ea7208e472a40f425346b6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fabfa0a9da0db9cd55bf04b4a62bc00c6f11a6c5b4ea7208e472a40f425346b6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fabfa0a9da0db9cd55bf04b4a62bc00c6f11a6c5b4ea7208e472a40f425346b6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"minbyun2024"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/minbyun2024.mycafe24.com\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/?author=1"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=252"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=252"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=252"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.minbyun.or.kr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=252"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}