Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the accounts of torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment by Ministry of State Security officials against North Korean religious adherents in the report by Korea Future Persecuting Faith: Documenting religious freedom violations in North Korea, published in October 2020; and in particular that report's findings that (1) a Christian was tortured by state officials, (2) a Christian was starved in detention, and (3) 32 Ministry of State Security officials associated with human rights violations against religious and belief adherents have been identified in the North Korean Religious Freedom Database.

The UK is deeply concerned by reports from North Korean escapees, which tell of serious human rights offences and persecution of those who are caught practising religion. We regularly engage and seek ways to support the work of NGOs on DPRK human rights, including Korea Future Initiative whose report contains disturbing accounts of violations of freedoms in North Korea. Under the Global Human Rights (GHR) sanctions regime which came into effect on 6 July 2020, the UK has already designated two entities involved in administering the DPRK penal system: the DPRK's Ministry of State Security (Bureau 7) and the Ministry of People's Security (Correctional Bureau) are now subject to an asset freeze and a travel ban.