A/HRC/25/63 experts testified publicly and provided information of great specificity, detail and relevance, in ways that often required a significant degree of courage. 13. Public hearings were conducted in Seoul (20 to 24 August 2013), Tokyo (29 and 30 August 2013), London (23 October 2013) and Washington, D.C. (30 and 31 October 2013).3 The commission invited the authorities of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to make representations at the public hearings, but received no reply. 14. The commission and its secretariat conducted more than 240 confidential interviews with victims and other witnesses. 15. In July 2013, the commission made a call for written submissions to all States Members of the United Nations and relevant stakeholders. At the finalization of the present report, 80 such submissions had been received. 16. The commission conducted official visits to the Republic of Korea, Japan, Thailand, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America. 17. The commission sought access to China in order to conduct inquiries and to consult with officials of the Government and local experts. A working meeting was held in July 2013, at which that request was made. The commission requested access to parts of China bordering the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. On 7 November 2013, the commission transmitted a further request for an invitation to visit China. On 20 November 2013, the Permanent Mission of China in Geneva informed the secretariat that, given the State’s position on country-specific mandates, especially on the Korean peninsula, it would not be possible to extend an invitation to the commission. In a follow-up letter dated 16 December 2013, the commission requested information on the status of citizens of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and their children in China, forced repatriations to and related cooperation with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, trafficking in persons and other issues relevant to the mandate of the commission (see annex II). 18. The commission engaged with a number of United Nations entities and other humanitarian actors. It regrets that other such entities and actors were not in a position to provide relevant information. The commission expresses its gratitude to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) for its support. The commission benefited from the invaluable support of a number of non-governmental organizations that thoroughly document human rights violations in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, despite the inadequate financial resources available to them. 19. The most significant investigative challenge faced by the commission, aside from the inability to have access to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, was the fear of reprisals by witnesses. Most of the potential witnesses residing outside the State were afraid to testify, even on a confidential basis, because they feared for the safety of family members and assumed that their conduct was still being clandestinely monitored by the authorities. 20. The commission paid particular attention to the protection of victims and witnesses. It recalls that primary responsibility for protecting victims, witnesses and other persons cooperating with the commission rests with their States of residence and nationality. The commission therefore urges Member States to provide additional protection measures where necessary. 3 Video recordings and transcripts from all the public hearings are available on the website of the commission of inquiry at www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/CoIDPRK. 5