N.Korea denounces new UN human rights expert

North Korea’s foreign ministry has criticized the newly appointed United Nations specialist on human rights Elizabeth Salmon as “biased”.

According to reports by North Korea’s state media KCNA, the foreign ministry said the country will not tolerate what it called U.S.-led efforts to topple the isolated regime.

“We had already made clear the principled stand that we neither recognize nor deal with any ‘special rapporteur’ who is merely a puppet of the U.S.,” KCNA cited an unidentified spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as saying.

Elizabeth Salmon is on her first official visit to South Korea since taking office last month.

In her inaugural statement, Salmon said the North’s human rights situation has worsened following over two years of strict measures to curb COVID-19.

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Pyongyang has repeatedly rejected accusations of human rights abuses and criticized U.N. investigations into the matter as a U.S.-backed scheme to interfere with its internal affairs.

“The DPRK will never pardon the U.S. and its vassal forces’ ‘human rights racket against the DPRK which is aimed at overthrowing its social system,” the official said.

A separate recent U.N. report also said North Korea’s coronavirus containment measures have exacerbated the country’s human rights violations, citing extra restrictions on access to information, tighter border security, and heightened digital surveillance.

Zainab Sa’id