United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called for investigations and punishment against perpetrators of North Korea's human rights abuses in order to realize justice. 

In a report to the 79th UN General Assembly on the North's human rights situation, Guterres highlighted that Pyongyang has yet to take any steps ten years after the publication of a report by the Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in North Korea(COI).

As the North has failed to hold anyone accountable for such violations, the UN chief suggested taking the case to the International Criminal Court(ICC) or a country with universal jurisdiction to investigate the perpetrators.

Guterres also stressed the need to help the victims through unconventional methods of seeking justice, such as compensation, fact finding, and remembrance.

The latest report contains cases of the regime's violations, including inadequate supply of food, restrictions on freedom of expression and freedom of movement, as well as testimonies about excessive executions and near-forced labor among workers overseas.