[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3012 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3012
To reauthorize the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 28, 2023
Mrs. Kim of California (for herself and Mr. Bera) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To reauthorize the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``North Korean Human Rights
Reauthorization Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (Public Law
108-333; 22 U.S.C. 7801 et seq.) and subsequent
reauthorizations of such Act were the product of broad,
bipartisan consensus regarding the promotion of human rights,
documentation of human rights violations, transparency in the
delivery of humanitarian assistance, and the importance of
refugee protection.
(2) The human rights and humanitarian conditions within
North Korea remain deplorable and have been intentionally
perpetuated against the people of North Korea through policies
endorsed and implemented by Kim Jong-un and the Workers' Party
of Korea.
(3) According to a 2014 report released by the United
Nations Human Rights Council's Commission of Inquiry on Human
Rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, between
80,000 and 120,000 children, women, and men were being held in
political prison camps in North Korea, where they were
subjected to deliberate starvation, forced labor, executions,
torture, rape, forced abortion, and infanticide.
(4) North Korea continues to hold a number of South Koreans
and Japanese abducted after the signing of the Agreement
Concerning a Military Armistice in Korea, signed at Panmunjom
July 27, 1953 (commonly referred to as the ``Korean War
Armistice Agreement'') and refuses to acknowledge the abduction
of more than 100,000 South Koreans during the Korean War in
violation of the Geneva Convention.
(5) Human rights violations in North Korea, which include
forced starvation, sexual violence against women and children,
restrictions on freedom of movement, arbitrary detention,
torture, executions, and enforced disappearances, amount to
crimes against humanity according to the United Nations
Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea.
(6) The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and North Korea's
strict lockdown of its borders and crackdowns on informal
market activities and small entrepreneurship have drastically
increased food insecurity for its people and given rise to
famine conditions in parts of the country.
(7) North Korea's COVID-19 border lockdown measures also
include shoot-to-kill orders that have resulted in the killing
of--
(A) North Koreans attempting to cross the border;
and
(B) at least 1 South Korean citizen in September
2020.
(8) The Government of the People's Republic of China is
aiding and abetting in crimes against humanity by forcibly
repatriating North Korean refugees to North Korea where they
are sent to prison camps, harshly interrogated, and tortured or
executed.
(9) The forcible repatriation of North Korean refugees
violates the People's Republic of China's freely undertaken
obligation to uphold the principle of non-refoulement, as a
state party to the Convention Relating to the Status of
Refugees, done at Geneva July 28, 1951 (and made applicable by
the Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, done at New
York January 31, 1967 (19 UST 6223)).
(10) North Korea continues to bar freedom of religion and
persecute religious minorities, especially Christians.
Eyewitnesses report that Christians in North Korea have been
tortured, forcibly detained, and even executed for possessing a
Bible or professing Christianity.
(11) United States and international broadcasting
operations into North Korea--
(A) serve as a critical source of outside news and
information for the North Korean people; and
(B) provide a valuable service for countering
regime propaganda and false narratives.
(12) The position of Special Envoy on North Korean Human
Rights Issues was vacant from January 2017 to December 2022,
even though the President is required to appoint a Senate-
confirmed Special Envoy to fill this position in accordance
with section 107 of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004
(22 U.S.C. 7817). In January 2023 President Biden nominated
Julie Turner as Special Envoy on North Korean Human Rights and
Issues and her nomination is currently awaiting Senate
confirmation.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) promoting information access in North Korea continues
to be a successful method of countering DPRK propaganda and the
United States Government should continue to support
nongovernmental radio broadcasting to North Korea and promote
other emerging methods in this space;
(2) because refugees among North Koreans fleeing into China
face severe punishments upon their forcible return, the United
States should urge the Government of the People's Republic of
China--
(A) to immediately halt its forcible repatriation
of North Koreans;
(B) to allow the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees (referred to in this section as ``UNHCR'')
unimpeded access to North Koreans within China to
determine whether they are refugees and require
assistance;
(C) to fulfill its obligations as a state party to
the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, done
at Geneva July 28, 1951 (and made applicable by the
Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, done at
New York January 31, 1967 (19 UST 6223) and the
Agreement on the upgrading of the UNHCR Mission in the
People's Republic of China to UNHCR branch office in
the People's Republic of China, done at Geneva December
1, 1995;
(D) to address the concerns of the United Nations
Committee Against Torture by incorporating into
domestic legislation the principle of non-refoulement;
and
(E) to recognize the legal status of North Korean
women who marry or have children with Chinese citizens
and ensure that all such mothers and children are
granted resident status and access to education and
other public services in accordance with Chinese law
and international standards;
(3) the United States Government should continue to promote
the effective and transparent delivery and distribution of any
humanitarian aid provided in North Korea to ensure that such
aid reaches its intended recipients to the point of consumption
or utilization by cooperating closely with the Government of
the Republic of Korea and international and nongovernmental
organizations;
(4) the Department of State should continue to take steps
to increase public awareness about the risks and dangers of
travel by United States citizens to North Korea, including by
continuing its policy of blocking United States passports from
being used to travel to North Korea without a special
validation from the Department of State;
(5) the United Nations, which has a significant role to
play in promoting and improving human rights in North Korea,
should press for access for the United Nations Special
Rapporteur and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights on the situation of human rights in North Korea;
(6) Julie Turner, Nominee for Special Envoy on North Korean
Human Rights Issues should be confirmed without delay--
(A) to properly promote and coordinate North Korean
human rights and humanitarian issues; and
(B) to participate in policy planning and
implementation with respect to refugee issues;
(7) the United States should urge North Korea to repeal the
Reactionary Thought and Culture Denunciation Law and other
draconian laws, regulations, and decrees that manifestly
violate the freedom of opinion and expression and the freedom
of thought, conscience, and religion;
(8) the United States should urge North Korea to ensure
that any restrictions on addressing the COVID-19 pandemic are
necessary, proportionate, nondiscriminatory, time-bound,
transparent, and allow international staff to operate inside
the North Korea to provide international assistance based on
independent needs assessments;
(9) the United States should expand the Rewards for Justice
program to be open to North Korean officials who can provide
evidence of crimes against humanity being committed by North
Korean officials;
(10) the United States should continue to seek cooperation
from all foreign governments--
(A) to allow the UNHCR access to process North
Korean refugees overseas for resettlement; and
(B) to allow United States officials access to
process refugees for possible resettlement in the
United States; and
(11) the Secretary of State, through diplomacy by senior
officials, including United States ambassadors to Asia-Pacific
countries, and in close cooperation with South Korea, should
make every effort to promote the protection of North Korean
refugees, escapees, and defectors.
SEC. 4. REAUTHORIZATIONS.
(a) Support for Human Rights and Democracy Programs.--Section
102(b)(1) of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C.
7812(b)(1)) is amended by striking ``2022'' and inserting ``2028''.
(b) Actions To Promote Freedom of Information.--Section 104 of the
North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7814) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``2022'' and
inserting ``2028''; and
(2) in subsection (c), by striking ``2022'' and inserting
``2028''.
(c) Report by Special Envoy on North Korean Human Rights Issues.--
Section 107(d) of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C.
7817(d)) is amended by striking ``2022'' and inserting ``2028''.
(d) Report on United States Humanitarian Assistance.--Section
201(a) of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7831(a))
is amended, in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ``2022''
and inserting ``2028''.
(e) Assistance Provided Outside of North Korea.--Section 203 of the
North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7833) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ``103(15)'' and
inserting ``103(17)''; and
(2) in subsection (c)(1), by striking ``2018 through 2022''
and inserting ``2023 through 2028''.
(f) Annual Reports.--Section 305(a) of the North Korean Human
Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7845(a)) is amended, in the matter
preceding paragraph (1) by striking ``2022'' and inserting ``2028''.
SEC. 5. ACTIONS TO PROMOTE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION.
Title I of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C.
7811 et seq.) is amended--
(1) in section 103(a), by striking ``Broadcasting Board of
Governors'' and inserting ``United States Agency for Global
Media''; and
(2) in section 104(a)--
(A) by striking ``Broadcasting Board of Governors''
each place such term appears and inserting ``United
States Agency for Global Media'';
(B) in paragraph (7)(B)--
(i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by
striking ``5 years'' and inserting ``10
years'';
(ii) by redesignating clauses (i) through
(iii) as clauses (ii) through (iv),
respectively;
(iii) by inserting before clause (ii) the
following:
``(i) an update of the plan required under
subparagraph (A);''; and
(iv) in clause (iii), as redesignated, by
striking ``pursuant to section 403'' and
inserting ``to carry out this section''.
SEC. 6. SPECIAL ENVOY FOR NORTH KOREAN HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES.
Section 107 of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22
U.S.C. 7817) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(e) Report on Appointment of Special Envoy.--Not later than 180
days after the date of the enactment of this subsection and annually
thereafter through 2028 if the position of Special Envoy remains
vacant, the Secretary of State shall submit a report to the appropriate
congressional committees that describes the efforts being taken to
appoint the Special Envoy.''.
SEC. 7. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING KOREAN-AMERICAN DIVIDED FAMILIES.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the United States and North Korea should begin the
process of reuniting Korean-American divided family members
with their immediate relatives through ways such as--
(A) identifying divided families in the United
States and North Korea who are willing and able to
participate in a pilot program for family reunions;
(B) finding matches for members of such families
through organizations such as the Red Cross; and
(C) working with the Government of South Korea to
include American citizens in inter-Korean video
reunions;
(2) the institution of family is inalienable and the
restoration of contact between divided families whether
physically, literarily, or virtually is an urgent need; and
(3) the United States and North Korea should pursue
reunions as a humanitarian priority of immediate concern.
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