A/HRC/13/47 I. Introduction 1. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur was established in 2004 to report on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, with one report per year submitted to the General Assembly and another to the then Commission on Human Rights (now to the Human Rights Council). The most recent report (A/64/224) was submitted to the General Assembly in the last half of 2009. Since the maximum term of a Special Rapporteur is six years, and the current Special Rapporteur’s term is now in its sixth year, the present report is the last he will submit to the Human Rights Council in his present function. The Special Rapporteur thanks warmly all Governments, members of civil society, international organizations and other concerned entities which have facilitated and supported his work, particularly in providing information to be used in his reports. This final report will partly take stock of the progression of his work, will provide an update on the situation covering the last half of 2009 until the beginning of 2010, and will offer recommendations for the future. It thus refers to retrospect, aspects and prospects. II. Retrospect: an overview of the work of the Special Rapporteur A. Methodology 2. The Special Rapporteur recalls that when the mandate was established, he was honoured to be invited by the Chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights to take up the post. He has based his findings on a variety of sources of information: some governmental, some intergovernmental, some non-governmental. These are supplemented by country visits, particularly to neighbouring countries, in order to assess the impact on those affected by the human rights situation in the country in question. Importantly, he has had access to scores of refugees and asylum-seekers, as well as other sources, to learn directly from them about the conditions in the country of origin and the reasons why they left their homes. He has been briefed consistently by United Nations agencies with a field presence in the country. He has written (and typed) all his reports himself to ensure the independent nature of his work. 3. In addition to preparing his reports for the United Nations, the Special Rapporteur has also sent various communications to the country in question to seek clarification and leniency of treatment for individuals affected negatively by the situation in the country. For the most part, the country in question has rebutted his communications dismissively. 4. Regrettably, throughout the mandate, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has declined to cooperate with the mandate holder. Had it cooperated, such as to invite the Special Rapporteur into the country, there would have been an opening to reflect more directly key developments in the country, particularly through site visits and contact at the national and local levels. 5. However, lack of physical access to the country has not prevented the Special Rapporteur from collecting and collating information from a variety of well-informed sources, as part of the checks and balances underlying the analysis offered by his work. He has also tried to bridge-build among countries that voted for this mandate, countries that voted against, and those that opted for abstention. Throughout the years, he has briefed a cross-section of these countries to inform them of his methodology and findings. 4 GE.10-10793