A long time human rights champion for North Korea is unimpressed by the second summit between North and South Korea to take place later this month.
Suzanne Scholte, president of the North Korea Freedom Coalition, said she believes the meeting is an attempt by North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il to influence the upcoming elections in the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and encourage the continuation of the Sunshine Policy - South Korea's political strategy for relations with North Korea that emphasises peaceful cooperation and reconciliation in hopes of reunifying the peninsula.
Scholte, who has spearheaded countless North Korean freedom campaigns in Washington, listed several important questions that must be asked about the summit:
Who will represent the North Korean people?
Will South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun ask for the political prison camps to be closed?
Will Roh ask for the return of the South Korean abductees and prisoners of war as well as the abductees from other nations?
Will Roh ask for North Koreans to be granted freedom of movement and travel so they can avoid starving to death?
Will Roh ask Kim to stop torturing, imprisoning and executing the refugees who are repatriated from China because they were simply trying to feed their families?
"Unless [South Korean president] Roh is planning on raising these issues and/or arresting Kim Jong-il for crimes against humanity, then this summit will simply allow Kim Jong-il to continue to interfere in South Korea's elections, so that he can stay in power and continue to build nuclear weapons, produce massive amounts of drugs to poison the youth in free nations, counterfeit US dollars and work aggressively to destroy South Korea's democracy, which is already weakened terribly by Roh's administration," Scholte told The Christian Post.
South Korean officials announced Wednesday that leaders of North and South Korea are planning to meet in North Korea's capital, Pyongyang, from 28-30 August to improve the regional situation, according to The Associated Press. However, there has been no specific agenda, prompting some expect very little progress.
"At this point, there is nothing to expect from the summit," the conservative opposing Grand National Party spokeswoman Na Kyung-won said Wednesday, according to AP.
