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Press

Press Briefings

본문영역

Regular Briefing by Spokesperson Cho Joonghoon

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조현선
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2022-12-26
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Regular Briefing by Spokesperson Cho Joonghoon
Date: Monday, December 26, 2022
Time: 10:30-10:38 A.M.

1. Ministry to recruit pioneer universities participating in unification education

The Unification Ministry has designated nine pioneer universities as a way of stimulating unification education and raising students’ awareness on unification.

As the term of the three universities that were designated in 2019 comes to an end this year, the Unification Ministry will select three new pioneer universities.

Those that were designated as pioneer universities will be supported by the Unification Ministry with 180 million won yearly for the next four years at the most for operating unification education programs.


2. Minister’s Schedule

At 10 A.M. today, Unification Minister Kwon Youngse newly appointed two directors and an auditor of the Foundation of Support for North Korean Defectors and highlighted their role in the settlement of North Korean defectors.

The three appointees will serve as non-executive directors and auditor of the Foundation of Support for North Korean Defectors for the next three years.


On December 29, Minister Kwon will attend and deliver congratulatory remarks at an event hosted by the North Korean Human Rights Association.

The North Korean Human Rights Association was organized in August this year by personnels from civil societies in an effort to establish the North Korean Human Rights Foundation and address North Korean human rights.


3. Vice Minister’s Schedule

On December 27, Vice Minister Kim Ki Woong will attend a product display exhibition for the Gaeseong Industrial Complex tenant companies and deliver congratulatory remarks on behalf of Minister Kwon.

The annual exhibit, dating back to 2006, is held as part of efforts to support tenant companies in the Gaeseong Industrial Complex.


4. Q&A

Q. A North Korean media outlet reported that the delegates of the Korean Children’s Union (KCU) were presented certificates of representation. It has been a while since the participants has arrived in Pyongyang. When do you think the congress of the KCU will be held?

A. The 7th Congress in 2013 was held on June 6, two days after the members of the KCU arrived in Pyongyang on June 4. In 2017, the 8th Congress was held on June 6, four days after they arrived in Pyongyang on June 2.

For this year’s event, the participants in the congress arrived in Pyongyang on December 20, however, there has not been any reports related to the congress for six days. We could say this seems a bit delayed compared to the past.
Since there was a report today that the delegates received certificates for the 9th congress, the Ministry expects the event to be held soon.


Q. Regarding next year’s budget, the Ministry allocated 2 billion won to support the activities of North Korean human rights organizations at home and abroad. Could you elaborate on the background of this budget plan, and is this the first time that the Ministry decided to support private organizations?

A. The Unification Ministry has continued to support private organizations, therefore, it is not the first time.

The budget for promoting North Korean human rights doubled from 1.9 billion won this year to 4.08 billion won next year. As the establishment of the North Korean Human Rights Foundation has been delayed, a budget of 2 billion won was newly allocated to help organizations carry out diverse activities on North Korean human rights.

Of the 667 related groups of the Unification Ministry and NGOs at home and abroad, the Ministry will select and support organizations for various projects including monitoring North Korean human rights status, raising awareness, and specializing in research.


Q. A number of experts view that a party plenary meeting may be held this week. What is the Ministry’s take on this?

A. On November 30, North Korea announced at the 11th Political Bureau meeting that the 6th plenary meeting of the party’s 8th central committee would be held in late December. As we are reaching towards the end of December, the Ministry expects a plenary meeting to be held this week.

Although North Korea has not yet specifically disclosed the agenda for the meeting, the Government anticipates that North Korea will review this year’s sectoral projects and present policy directions and plans for next year. We will continue monitoring related developments.