A/HRC/34/66 best way to overcome allegedly distorted information is through engagement, including by providing access to the country to allow him to receive first-hand information from various stakeholders, including government agencies. 32. While the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has rejected the specific country mandate as being selective and politicized, several special procedure thematic mandates of the Human Rights Council also remain relevant to the country situation. These mandates can provide meaningful assistance to the country in improving the human rights situation. In this respect, and in accordance with a number of recommendations that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea accepted during the second universal periodical review, the Special Rapporteur encourages the Government to establish cooperation with the Special Rapporteurs on the rights of persons with disabilities; extreme poverty and human rights; the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights; the right to education; the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health; the right to food; adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context; the right to development; trafficking in persons, especially women and children; the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression; the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; the independence of judges and lawyers; torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; freedom of religion or belief; the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence; the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights; the Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice; and the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, among others. 33. The Special Rapporteur also urges the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to continue to engage with the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. He also calls on the Government to initiate dialogue with the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, reflecting its international obligations as a State party to the respective treaties. 34. Since his appointment in August 2016, the Special Rapporteur has also liaised with Governments that have diplomatic relations with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and various organizations that provide humanitarian and technical assistance to the country. The aim of these exchanges is to increase the much-needed space for dialogue with the authorities on the implementation of international human rights obligations, particularly the recommendations that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has accepted as part of the universal periodic review. 35. The Special Rapporteur believes that the time is ripe for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to take a new approach towards United Nations human rights mechanisms. The Government should seriously consider granting access to these mechanisms, even if gradually. Such a change would be a step-by-step process, based on dialogue, trust-building and mutual confidence. The approach will broaden possibilities for engagement at the international level, including by expanding the space for technical cooperation and increasing opportunities to improve the situation of human rights in the country. B. Group of independent experts on accountability 36. Pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 31/18, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights designated two independent experts, Sonja Biserko (Serbia) and Sara Hossain (Bangladesh), to support the work of the Special Rapporteur on the issue of accountability for human rights violations in the Democratic People’s Republic 13