New head of UN human rights office in Seoul begins official activities

Diplomacy

Published: 18 Oct. 2022, 10:22

New head of UN human rights office in Seoul begins official activities

James Heenan, center, the new head of the UN office, in the UN Human Rights Office in Seoul on Oct. 17, posing for a photo with officials from civic group officials working on North Korea's human rights. [YONHAP]

The new head of the UN Human Rights Office in Seoul has vowed to work toward improving North Korea's dire human rights conditions, as he began his official activities after arriving in South Korea earlier this month.

James Heenan, representative of the UN Human Rights Office in Seoul, met on Monday with activists from around 30 civic groups working on North Korea's human rights, according to the office's Twitter account. He took over as the office's chief on Oct. 2.

"[Heenan] listened about civil society organizations (CSOs) work and their engagement on human rights in North Korea. We will continue our close engagement with all CSOs to advance the human rights agenda in the DPRK," the office said.

DPRK is the acronym of North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Heenan's position had been vacant since July 2020 after his predecessor, Signe Poulsen, left for a new post in the Philippines after a five-year stint.

After working as a labor lawyer in Britain and Australia, Heenan has worked in various posts at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (Ohchr) for about 20 years. He served as the head of the Ohchr in the occupied Palestinian territory from 2015 before moving to Seoul.

The UN Human Rights Office in Seoul opened in 2015 to monitor North Korea's human rights situations.

Yonhap