U.N. member states have submitted official inquiries on North Korea’s human rights issues ahead of the U.N. Human Rights Council annual review of the rights situations in member countries.

A total of ten countries --- including South Korea, Japan, Germany and Argentina --- have submitted written inquiries on Pyongyang’s human rights issues, as the U.N. council will hold its Universal Periodic Review on Monday.

South Korea raised questions about the issue of separated families and the human rights situation for North Korean escapees, while Japan focused questions on the issue of Japanese abductees in the North and whether the reclusive state plans to abolish concentration camps.

Germany, Denmark and Sweden inquired about famine among children in the North as well as the issue of separated families.

The Universal Periodic Review is a process which involves a review of the human rights records of all 192 U.N. member states once every four years. A final written recommendation on the North’s human rights situation is expected to come out in March.