The Japanese government is promoting the revision of a law on North Korean human rights in an attempt to make it easier for North Korean escapees to come to Japan.

According to Japan’s Sankei Shimbun, Hiroshi Nakai, Chairman of the National Commission on Public Safety, told a parliamentary committee that the existing North Korean human rights law is distorted and cannot properly help North Korean escapees.

He said the ruling Democratic Party of Japan will seek to change the framework of the law through discussions with related ministries.

Nakai, who also serves as the minister of affairs for the issue of Japanese abducted by North Korea, said Tokyo is attempting to revise the law so as to treat North Korean escapees as refugees.

It remains uncertain whether the law will be revised by June 16th, when the ongoing parliamentary session ends, due to opposition from the Liberal Democratic Party and the Social Democratic Party.