UN committee slams North Korea, Iran on rights
Purchase this article for republication
Buy SPH photosUNITED NATIONS (AFP) - A key UN committee on Tuesday passed resolutions condemning human rights abuses by North Korea, Iran and Syria amid growing Western pressure for action.
An annual vote on North Korea was passed by consensus for the first time, with not even close ally China voting against.
A larger number of countries than last year backed a resolution against Syria but a reduced majority passed a condemnation of Iran's human rights record at the UN General Assembly committee.
The resolution on North Korea, prepared by European nations, slammed the "systematic, widespread and grave violations of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights," in the tightly controlled Stalinist nation.
