A/HRC/43/58 echoes the call made to the Security Council by the Special Rapporteur almost two and a half years ago to develop a comprehensive assessment of the sanctions regime in order to avoid unintended negative impacts on human rights, especially economic, social and cultural rights, and to ensure that the sanctions regime did not impose what would effectively constitute a collective punishment on the ordinary citizens of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. He therefore encourages the Secretary-General to move forward on that recommendation, with a mandate that includes not only the humanitarian impact of sanctions, but also their impact on the fulfilment of human rights. In that regard, the Special Rapporteur again emphasizes the human rights obligations of Member States in relation to the impact of sanctions, as outlined in general comment No. 8 (1997) on the relationship between economic sanctions and respect for economic, social and cultural rights of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. 13. The Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea opposes the sanctions regime. During the consideration by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on 8 November 2017 of the combined second to fourth periodic reports of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the country’s Permanent Representative said that “the United States and other hostile forces impeded in every possible way the enjoyment of human rights by the people of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, including through manipulating the so-called sanctions resolutions against the country, which violated its right to existence and the right to development. Vulnerable people such as women and children were the victims of those inhumane sanctions. The vicious economic sanctions ran counter to the ideals of humanitarianism and human rights, could never be justified, and should be lifted immediately”.16 However, the Government has not provided access, data or information which would allow an accurate and comprehensive assessment of the detrimental impact of the sanctions. The Special Rapporteur reminds the Government of the steps needed to enable the international community to make an assessment of the human rights impact of sanctions, 17 which, primarily, means providing access to monitoring agencies, as well as providing comprehensive and accurate data. B. Fundamental freedoms 14. The basic freedoms of the people of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea continue to be limited and dependent on the interests of the Worker’s Party of Korea. Control over and surveillance of the population persists, and the population fears arbitrary arrest and mistreatment, including detention in political prison (kwanliso).The failed economic and distribution system means that a significant proportion of citizens struggle to meet their basic needs while working in inadequately paid or unpaid State-assigned jobs. Discrimination based on songbun 18 also persists. An escapee described her life in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as “no freedom, no rations, no commercial activities, surveillance and the risk of crackdown, no happiness for anyone in farming areas”. 15. The fear of being sent to political prison is entrenched in people’s daily life. The Ministry of State Security exclusively makes the decision to send those who are accused of committing crimes against the State to political prison. The suspects’ families are not informed of the decisions or of the whereabouts of their relatives, which amounts to enforced disappearance. According to personal accounts, although the number of public executions has decreased, they do still occur. One account of such a case in 2018 described how a woman convicted of killing the son of a party secretary was shot multiple times by 10 police officers on a bridge and how thousands of people were mobilized to observe the execution. 16 17 18 6 See www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=22373&LangID=E. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, general comment No. 12 (1999) on the right to adequate food, para. 37. Songbun is a classification system based on the political, social and economic background of a person’s direct ancestors as well as the behaviour of a person and his or her relatives.