 North Korean food shortages have grown worse after its recent nuclear test led donors to withdraw aid, the UN says. The UN official monitoring human rights in North Korea, Vitit Muntarbhorn, said the food shortage was critical.
| The grass and bark crops have come in under estimates ... |
North Korea is already short of food and this year floods have damaged the harvest, making matters even worse.
President Kim Jong-Il's nuclear test has led to international condemnation of the secretive regime and sanctions against its nuclear programme. Pyongyang was due to receive 100,000 tonnes of food aid but will now get less than that, Mr Muntarbhorn said. "Matters became ultra-complicated because of the missile test in July as well as the nuclear test recently, which prodded various potential contributors to reconsider giving the aid," he said. "So there has been this sad and regrettable linkage between the various tests and the impact on the food situation."
His report says there are major concerns about basic issues like the right to life, the right to food and freedom of expression and religion.
| Not that he'd do anything about any of them. |
Although Mr Muntarbhorn credits the regime for reforming its criminal law, ...
... he says there are still what he calls many transgressions and discrepancies of an egregious nature when it comes to the fundamental rights of North Korea's people.
Can't do anything about it, however, just keep sending food for the army people. |
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