The National Human Rights Commission of Korea, Human Asia and Korea University’s Graduate School of International Studies co-hosted an international conference in Seoul under the theme, “Cooperation Between Governments and Civil Society to Protect and Promote Refugee Rights” on August 21, 2012. At the conference, various experts on refugee issues from all over the world spoke, including panelists from South Korea, the United Kingdom, the U.S., the Philippines, Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, Nepal and New Zealand. The rights of North Korean defectors were one of the main focuses of their discussion.

The conference was divided into four main sections. The first