UNITED NATIONS: The chief UN investigator into human rights cases in North Korea said yesterday he has appealed to China to support calls to refer Pyongyang’s actions to The Hague on suspicion of crimes against humanity.
Western diplomats say China, North Korea’s principal protector on the UN Security Council, will likely use its veto power there to knock down any attempt to refer North Korea to the International Criminal Court.
But Michael Kirby, a former Australian judge who led the independent UN inquiry into alleged human rights abuses in North Korea, told reporters at UN headquarters that it was by no means certain Beijing would block an ICC referral.
“I don’t think a veto should be assumed,” Kirby said. “China is a very great power with great responsibilities as a permanent member. Veto is not the way China does international diplomacy. China tends to find another way.”
“We continue to (work) in hopes that China, as a great power, will act as a great power should,” he added.
REUTERS
