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PERMANENT MISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA GENEVA
The 29thSession of the Human Rights Council <Check against delivery>
Item 3: Clustered Interactive Dialogue with Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights and Special Rapporteur on Counter-Terrorism
Geneva, 22 June, 2015
Statement of the Republic of Korea
Thank you, Mr. President,The Republic of Korea would like to express its sincere gratitude to the Special Rapporteurs for their comprehensive and thought-provoking reports. The reports provide us with a clear overview surrounding the issues of extreme poverty and counter-terrorism.
First, with regard to the report of Mr. Philip Alston, Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human rights, my delegation appreciates his approach in focusing on the relationship between extreme poverty and extreme inequality.
As his in-depth report aptly points out, these conditions reinforce each other in a downward spiral, creating a detrimental impact on a range of civil, political, social, and cultural rights.
The report also highlights that the response of the international community to the challenge of rising inequalities across the globe currently lacks a human rights perspective, which contributes to exacerbating this matter.
With this understanding, my delegation takes note of his view that human rights need to be centered on the inequality debate as a key element in breaking the vicious cycle of extreme poverty and extreme inequality. Along these lines, we appreciate his efforts to shed light on the need for the greater engagement of a human rights fr amework in addressing this issue.
We hope that the Special Rapporteur continues to build on his activities by further elaborating the relevance of human rights to extreme inequality.
Turning to the report of Mr. Ben Emmerson, Special Rapporteur on Counter-Terrorism, my delegation values his in-depth analysis of the situation where human rights violations by ISIL are perpetuated with impunity and, in this regard, supports his recommendations on how to address the situation.
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In particular, my delegation shares his sense of priority that States are obliged to protect civilian populations from widespread and systematic acts of violence and terrorism. Also, we concur with his view that any response should be grounded in respect for international law, especially international human rights law and international humanitarian law.
Furthermore, we would like to echo the Special Rapporteur’s recommendation that, where they are able to exercise jurisdiction, States should prosecute individuals who have committed grave international crimes and systematic human rights abuses. In the same vein, we wish to emphasize that all perpetrators, whether state or non-state actors, are brought to justice.
Mr. President,
While there has been considerable progress in the eradication of poverty as well as in the fight against terrorism, redoubled efforts must continue in these areas. We believe that today’s dialogue will serve as a strong opportunity to discuss solutions at both domestic and international levels.
I thank you, Mr. President. /END/
