DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF KOREA
19
Citizens do not have the ability to choose their government peacefully.
Elections and Political Participation
Recent Elections: The most recent national elections to select representatives to
the Supreme People’s Assembly occurred in March 2019. These elections were
neither free nor fair. The government openly monitored voting, resulting in a
reported 100 percent participation rate and 100 percent approval of the preselected
government candidates. Local elections in 2015 were likewise neither free nor
fair. The government reported a 99.97 percent turnout, with 100 percent approval
for the government candidates.
Political Parties and Political Participation: The government has created several
“minority parties.” Lacking grassroots organizations, the parties existed only as
rosters of officials with token representation in the Supreme People’s Assembly.
Participation of Women and Members of Minority Groups: Although the law
affords women equal right to vote and hold political office, few women were
elected or appointed to senior government positions. As of 2016 women
constituted approximately 3.1 percent of members and 2.8 percent of candidate
members of the Central Committee of the WPK and held few key WPK leadership
positions. In August media reported the appointment of a woman, Pak Myong
Sun, to the WPK Central Committee Political Bureau, the party’s highest-level
body, and as director of a WPK Central Committee department. With her
appointment, the country had only two women in the 31-member Political Bureau,
the other being Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong. Among approximately 20
party departments and offices, only one was headed by a woman. The 2014
UNCOI report indicated only 10 percent of central government officials were
women.
The country is racially and ethnically homogenous. There are officially no
minorities.
Section 4. Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government
Verifiable information was not available on whether criminal penalties for official
corruption were actually applied. International organizations widely reported
senior officials engaged in corrupt practices with impunity.
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2020
United States Department of State • Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor