In a 195-page report, “Inescapable Violence: Child Abuse within North Korea,” the group described sexual abuse as “institutionalized and widely accepted as a normal part of life.”“Children are constantly in danger of being sexually harassed, and have no legal recourse available to them,” the report said. North Korea has previously rejected criticism over human rights abuses as false accusations aimed at toppling its regime. PSCORE said the rampant abuses constitute a breach of a U.N. convention on children’s rights, to which North Korea is a signatory. U.N. investigators have also criticized human rights violations in North Korea including the use of political prison camps where executions, rape and starvation take place. “The lack of government response crystallizes the notion that child sexual abuse is tolerated, and results in the rampant social stigmatization that prevents victims from reporting their abuse,” PSCORE said.

Source: National Post November 27, 2019 10:52 UTC