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Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon on Friday said there was no direct connection between his candidacy for the UN top job and human rights in North Korea, an issue Seoul has been accused of failing to address.
¡°I don¡¯t think a specific issue like North Korean human rights has a direct connection to the bid for the UN secretary-general's seat,¡± Ban told reporters. Asked by a CBS reporter whether the way the South Korean government handles human rights conditions in North Korea could hurt his bid for the UN job, Ban replied, ¡°What the secretary general does is not directly related to a specific issue in a particular country.¡±
The minister said he was ¡°well aware¡± of criticism of the South Korean government for abstaining on resolutions on North Korea¡¯s human rights abuses in the world body. But he said the government had ¡°taken many opportunities to demonstrate its concern about the issue.¡±
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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