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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Under the misnomer of the Democratic People's
3Republic of Korea, the current North Korean government is a
4continuation of the absolute dynastic dictatorship started by
5Kim Il-sung in 1948; following his death in 1994, Kim Il-sung
6was succeeded by his eldest son, Kim Jong-il; on December 17,
72011, Kim Jong-il died and his youngest son, Kim Jong-un, was
8immediately installed as his successor; the majority of the
9North Korean people have experienced unimaginable suffering
10during the regimes of all 3 dictators; and
 
11    WHEREAS, The North Korean government's top priority is
12total control of all aspects of life in North Korea; all
13information, artistic expression, academic works, and media
14activity within its borders is strictly limited, as is freedom
15of speech; and
 
16    WHEREAS, The North Korean government has executed
17political prisoners, other outspoken opponents of the regime,
18and certain "repatriated" defectors, as well as members of
19outlawed religions and organizations; and
 
20    WHEREAS, The North Korean government currently holds
21almost a quarter of a million political prisoners in camps
22under deplorable conditions; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, In the early 1990s, more than 2 million
2inhabitants of North Korea died of starvation due to the
3failure of the North Korean government-operated centralized
4agricultural and distribution systems; a 2002 United
5Nations-European Union survey indicated that one out of every
610 North Korean children are acutely malnourished and 4 out of
710 are chronically malnourished; and
 
8    WHEREAS, The North Korean government continues to prevent
9the monitoring of the delivery of food aid provided by the
10World Food Program since 1995; and
 
11    WHEREAS, The resultant risk of starvation, threat of
12persecution, and lack of personal freedoms have caused hundreds
13of thousands of North Koreans to flee, primarily into China,
14where the women are often at risk of being kidnapped and sold
15as brides, concubines, or forced into prostitution; and
 
16    WHEREAS, The Chinese government has consistently detained,
17convicted, and imprisoned foreign aid workers who, in accord
18with United Nations conventions and protocol, assist these
19North Korean aliens; and
 
20    WHEREAS, While the responsibility for domestic refugee
21resettlement naturally devolves to the South Koreans, the

 

 

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1United States should play a leadership role in addressing the
2plight of these refugees and develop international solutions
3for this humanitarian crisis; therefore, be it
 
4    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL
5ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we express our
6solidarity with the North Korean refugees in their quest for
7relief from hunger and persecution; and be it further
 
8    RESOLVED, That we articulate our support for development of
9a Human Rights and Democracy program that includes meaningful
10cultural and educational exchanges with North Korea; and be it
11further
 
12    RESOLVED, That we call upon the United States government to
13take a leadership role in forming an international framework
14for resettlement of North Korean refugees both here and abroad;
15and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
17presented to President Barack Obama, Secretary of State John
18Kerry, the members of the Illinois congressional delegation,
19and the Illinois Human Rights Commission.