North Korean women are deprived of education and job opportunities and are often subjected to violence at home and sexual assault in the workplace, a United Nations human rights panel said on Monday.
After a regular review of Pyongyang’s record, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women voiced concern at rape or mistreatment of women in detention, especially those repatriated after fleeing abroad.
North Korean women are “under-represented or disadvantaged” in tertiary education, the judiciary, security and police forces and leadership and managerial positions “in all non-traditional areas of work”, the panel of experts said. Domestic violence is prevalent and there is “very limited awareness” about the issue and a lack of legal services, psycho-social support and shelters available to victims, it said.