For three days from October 22 to 24, Seoul will host the first-ever global North Korean human rights event organized by a coalition of escapee groups. @Freedom Chosun
SEOUL, Oct. 20, 2025 (Freedom Chosun)
Representatives of North Korean escapees from around the world will gather in Seoul this week for the 2025 Seoul Global Conference on North Korean Human Rights, aiming to highlight human rights abuses in North Korea and strengthen international solidarity among escapees.
The three-day event, running from October 22 to 24, will feature a series of forums and assemblies under the themes of memory, silence, solidarity, and commitment. Participants will also discuss forming the Global Federation of North Korean Diaspora (DiaChong), a network designed to coordinate global advocacy efforts.
Organizers say this is the first international platform where escapees will act not as victims but as leaders in human rights activism. Delegates from 11 countries, including the United States, Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Ukraine, and South Korea, will represent escapee communities in 24 nations.
Remembering the Disappeared
The conference will open with the North Korean Diaspora Forum on October 23 at The Plaza Hotel in Seoul. Chaired by Thae Yong-ho, a former North Korean diplomat to the United Kingdom and current South Korean lawmaker, the forum will display photographs and names of more than 120 people who were either disappeared as political prisoners or forcibly repatriated from China.
Testimonies from three mothers who lost their children to North Korea’s political prison system will lead the session, followed by presentations from representatives of participating countries on strategies for international cooperation on North Korean human rights.
The forum will conclude with the adoption of the Declaration of the Global Federation of North Korean Diaspora for Human Rights and Liberation in North Korea, jointly signed by escapee groups worldwide.
Human rights activists around the world are launching campaigns to rescue North Korean defectors. / Photo = VOA via Freedom Chosun
Silent Assembly and Public Awareness
On October 23, about 40 human rights organizations will hold information booths at Seoul City Hall Plaza to raise awareness about North Korea’s human rights situation. At 11:30 a.m., participants will stage a 30-minute silent assembly, forming a circle and holding photos of victims to appeal for public attention and solidarity.
“Solidarity of Memory”
At 2 p.m. on October 24, participants will march to the Government Complex Seoul plaza, where they will read aloud the names of 124 missing family members believed to have been forcibly disappeared by the North Korean regime.
The event will also feature a statement criticizing what organizers describe as the South Korean government’s “anti-human-rights” policy that encourages escapees to “forget their families in the North.” The statement will be formally delivered to Unification Minister Chung Dong-young.
Global Federation of North Korean Diaspora
The closing session, scheduled for 3 p.m. on October 24, will focus on establishing the Global Federation of North Korean Diaspora (DiaChong). Interim chair Thae Yong-ho will present the group’s mission and leadership structure spanning 11 countries, including the United States, Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, France, and Germany.
The meeting will also discuss a “One Meal a Month” grassroots campaign, legislative cooperation with national parliaments and international institutions, and leadership development for the next generation of defectors.
Organizers describe DiaChong as a platform that will enable escapees to evolve “from victims to witnesses, and from witnesses to agents of human rights action.”
Significance
According to the organizing committee, the event is intended not only as a commemoration but as a turning point in the 30-year history of the North Korean human rights movement, connecting the stages of memory, testimony, solidarity, and action.
Host: Organizing Committee for the 2025 Seoul Global Conference on North Korean Human Rights / North Korean Escapee Subcommittee
Co-organizer: Preparatory Committee for the Global Federation of North Korean Diaspora (DiaChong)
Contact: Secretariat of the Global Federation of North Korean Diaspora, +82-10-7101-3042
※ This article was translated using ChatGPT. If you find any errors, please contact the Freedom Chosun editorial office - mkdkq7@gmail.com