On June 8, 2025, 14 North Korean defectors arrived in Berlin via Frankfurt, Germany from South Korea. This was the largest number of North Korean defectors living in South Korea visiting Europe in the past 30 years. The delegation is a coalition of civil society groups led by North Korean defectors who have been leading North Korean human rights activities in the United States and South Korea alternately for the past 20 years. The conference in Berlin was organized by SARAM and the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council (PUAC).
Among the figures leading North Korea Freedom Week – the current website reports on the 2024 event so far – is Susan Scholte, who played a major role in establishing the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, based in Washington. The first North Korea Freedom Week event in Europe was delayed by several weeks from the original plan due to the South Korean presidential election.
North Korean defector human rights activists believe that the reshuffle of mid-level personnel at the South Korean National Intelligence Service (NIS), including the replacement of the director of the NIS, is a strategic restructuring that signifies the Lee Jae-myung administration’s shift to a conciliatory tone toward North Korea, rather than a simple organizational adjustment. While it is not new since the North Korea policy is always implemented whenever the government changes, it is unfortunate that the topic of North Korean human rights is always politicized. While the conservative government views the North Korean regime as a target of suppression, the progressive government pursues coexistence through dialogue, but within that framework, the topic of North Korean human rights, which should be viewed as a universal human right, is experiencing a contradiction in which it is replaced by the opposing political values of the two camps depending on the government.
One might predict that this change in government and the shift in tone will also bring about changes in the channels for collecting and disseminating information related to North Korea. In particular, the defection routes in China and personal networks within North Korea will be the most sensitive. This is because those who leak information while travelling in and out of North Korea are considered more vulnerable groups in a conciliatory tone toward North Korea.
Another concern is about the weakening of the surveillance capacity not only of human rights activists but also of the entire international community. What impact will the changes in the National Intelligence Service (NIS) brought about by the change in government have on not only domestic human rights groups but also international solidarity activities for North Korean human rights? Suppose the NIS, a key executive agency of the North Korea policy, reduces information on North Korean human rights in line with the government’s tone or restricts international networks and collaborations among human rights groups. In that case, it will lead to a weakening of the international community’s ability to respond. It must be ensured that the UN, EU, and international human rights organizations do not stop sharing information.
The 22nd North Korea Freedom Week Europe delegation in 2025 carried out various activities from June 8 to June 14 in Berlin, Germany and Brussels, Belgium, to inform the public of serious human rights violations in North Korea, including enforced disappearances, political prison camps, and suppression of freedom of expression.
At the end of the activities, it was emphasized that “human rights cannot be a tool of politics”, and that human dignity should take precedence over ideological issues, and that it should be approached from the perspective of a civilizational responsibility, not short-term politics. Going forward, specific civil movement issues include strengthening international solidarity, securing alternative information channels, strengthening domestic surveillance and response capabilities, promoting human change within North Korea, and establishing a digital testimony archive. In conclusion, the North Korean human rights movement should not be approached as a short-term political issue, but from the perspective of civilizational responsibility. The liberation of North Korean citizens begins not with diplomacy or politics, but with the sincerity and sustainability of human rights themselves.
Jang Seiul, Chairman of the 22nd North Korea Freedom Week Organizing Committee and Representative of the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy / Member of the North Korea Freedom Week European Event Delegation. He can be contacted via cjdwjs444@naver.com.
Stephan Blancke 
Bodo Wegmann