The United Nations Human Rights Council(UNHRC) has adopted a resolution condemning the human rights violations of North Korea for the 22nd consecutive year.

The UNHRC on Thursday adopted the resolution by consensus without a vote during the 55th regular session at the UN office in Geneva, Switzerland.

China, Eritrea and Cuba did not join the consensus. 

The resolution on the issue, first adopted in 2003 by the Human Rights Commission, the predecessor of the UNHRC, has now been adopted for 22 consecutive years.

The resolution condemns the systematic and widespread human rights violations in the North, urges Pyongyang to take measures to stop the violations and calls for related countries to respect the principle of non-refoulement. 

This year’s resolution includes a demand for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to present a comprehensive report on the human rights situation in the North at the 60th session of the UNHRC set for September next year. 

South Korea welcomed the UNHRC’s adoption of the resolution. The foreign ministry said in a statement on Thursday that this year marks the tenth anniversary of the release of the UN Commission of Inquiry report on human rights in North Korea, and noted that the adoption of the latest resolution demonstrates the international community’s concerns over the human rights situation in the North.