UN Rights Chief Türk in Seoul Calls for ICC Accountability for DPRK, Says Non-Refoulement Applies to DPRK POWs in Ukraine

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk held a press conference in Seoul on May 13, 2026, the second day of his three-day official visit to South Korea — the first by a UN human rights chief in 11 years (since 2015). Türk called for an 'all hands on deck' response to North Korea's human rights crisis, stating his office 'has continued to document patterns of ongoing gross human rights violations, some of which may amount to crimes against humanity.' He pushed for accountability 'in all its forms, including non-traditional forms,' explicitly backed a potential International Criminal Court referral for North Korea, and stressed that engagement with Pyongyang 'cannot come at the expense of human rights.' In a significant legal development, Türk stated that 'the principle of non-refoulement applies to' North Korean prisoners of war captured by Ukrainian forces — meaning they cannot be forcibly returned to North Korea where they face likely execution or imprisonment. Kim Jong-un himself had condemned soldiers who surrender rather than fighting to the death as dishonorable during his April 27 memorial inauguration, making this a life-threatening situation for any DPRK POW. Türk met North Korean defectors, civil society groups, and South Korean government officials during his visit. He also welcomed the upcoming visit by North Korea's Naegohyang Women's FC to Suwon (scheduled May 20), the first North Korean sports team to visit South Korea in over seven years, calling for urgent resumption of inter-Korean family reunions and clarification of the whereabouts of disappeared persons.