In the Senate of the United States, 

April 24, 2018. 

Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 2061) entitled ‘‘An Act to reauthorize the North 

Korean Human Rights Act of 2004, and for other purposes.’’, do pass with the following 

AMENDMENT: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 

following: 

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘North Korean Human 

3 Rights Reauthorization Act of 2017’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress makes the following findings: 

6 (1) In 2014, the United Nations Commission of 

7 Inquiry (COI) on Human Rights in the Democratic 

8 People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) found that the 

9 grave human rights violations still being perpetrated 

10 against the people of North Korea, due to policies es-
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1 tablished at the highest level of the state, amount to 

2 crimes against humanity. Crimes include forced star3 vation, sexual violence against women and children, 

4 restrictions on freedom of movement, arbitrary deten5 tion, torture, executions, and enforced disappearances, 

6 among other hardships. 

7 (2) The COI also noted that the Government of 

8 the People’s Republic of China is aiding and abetting 

9 in crimes against humanity by forcibly repatriating 

10 North Korean refugees back to the DPRK. Upon repa11 triation, North Koreans are sent to prison camps, tor12 tured, or even executed. The Government of the Peo13 ple’s Republic of China’s forcible repatriation of 

14 North Korean refugees violates its obligation to up15 hold the principle of non-refoulement, under the 

16 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of 

17 Refugees, done at Geneva July 28, 1951 (as made ap18 plicable by the Protocol Relating to the Status of Ref19 ugees, done at New York January 31, 1967 (19 UST 

20 6223)). 

21 (3) Estimates from the COI suggest that between 

22 80,000 and 120,000 people are believed to be impris23 oned in political prison camps in North Korea. An24 other 70,000 are believed to be held at other detention 

25 facilities. Prisoners in both situations are subject to 
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1 harsh conditions, limited food, sexual abuse, and in 

2 most cases hard labor. 

3 (4) One of the findings of the COI report was the 

4 persecution of religious minorities, especially Chris5 tians. There is effectively no freedom of religion in 

6 North Korea, only worship of the Kim family. Chris7 tians are subjected to particularly acute persecution. 

8 It has been reported that Christians in North Korea 

9 have been tortured, forcibly detained, and even exe10 cuted for possessing a Bible or professing Christi11 anity. 

12 (5) North Korea profits from its human rights 

13 abuses. A 2014 report from the Asian Institute for 

14 Policy Studies suggests that there are nearly 50,000 

15 North Korean workers forced to labor overseas, some16 times without compensation, and for as much as 20 

17 hours at a time. Workers that received compensation 

18 were not to be paid more than $150 per month, which 

19 is between 10 to 20 percent of the value of the labor 

20 they performed. Based on this report, the regime may 

21 profit as much as $360,000,000 annually from just 

22 50,000 laborers. 

23 (6) On July 6, 2016, the United States imposed 

24 sanctions on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and 

25 other senior North Korean officials for human rights 
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1 violations as required by the North Korea Sanctions 

2 and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 (Public Law 

3 114–122). This was the first time that the United 

4 States had designated North Korean officials for 

5 human rights abuses. 

6 (7) The North Korea Sanctions and Policy En7 hancement Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–122) re8 quires the President to impose mandatory penalties 

9 under United States law on any person that ‘‘know10 ingly engages in, is responsible for, or facilitates seri11 ous human rights abuses by the Government of North 

12 Korea’’. 

13 (8) Although the United States Refugee Admis14 sions Program remains the largest in the world by 

15 far, the United States has only resettled 212 refugees 

16 from North Korea since the date of the enactment of 

17 the North Korea Human Rights Act of 2004 (Public 

18 Law 108–333). 

19 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

20 It is the sense of Congress that— 

21 (1) the United States Government should con22 tinue to make it a priority to improve information 

23 access in North Korea by exploring the use of new 

24 and emerging technologies and expanding nongovern-
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1 mental radio broadcasting to North Korea, including 

2 news and information; 

3 (2) the United Nations has a significant role to 

4 play in promoting and improving human rights in 

5 North Korea and should press for access for the Spe6 cial Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in 

7 North Korea as well as the United Nations High 

8 Commissioner for Human Rights; 

9 (3) because North Koreans fleeing into China 

10 face a well-founded fear of persecution upon their 

11 forcible repatriation, the United States should urge 

12 China to— 

13 (A) immediately halt the forcible repatri14 ation of North Koreans; 

15 (B) allow the United Nations High Com16 missioner for Refugees unimpeded access to 

17 North Koreans inside China to determine wheth18 er such North Koreans require protection as refu19 gees; 

20 (C) fulfill its obligations under the 1951 

21 United Nations Convention Relating to the Sta22 tus of Refugees, the 1967 Protocol Relating to the 

23 Status of Refugees, and the Agreement on the 

24 Upgrading of the UNHCR Mission in the Peo25 ple’s Republic of China to UNHCR Branch Of-
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1 fice in the People’s Republic of China (signed 

2 December 1, 1995); 

3 (D) address the concerns of the United Na4 tions Committee against Torture by incor5 porating the principle of non-refoulement into 

6 Chinese domestic legislation; and 

7 (E) recognize the legal status of North Ko8 rean women who marry or have children with 

9 Chinese citizens, and ensure that all such chil10 dren are granted resident status and access to 

11 education and other public services in accord12 ance with Chinese law and international stand13 ards; 

14 (4) the President should continue to designate all 

15 individuals found to have committed violations de16 scribed in section 104(a) of the North Korea Sanc17 tions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 (22 

18 U.S.C. 2914(a)), regarding complicity in censorship 

19 and human right abuses; 

20 (5) the United States currently blocks United 

21 States passports from being used to travel to North 

22 Korea without a special validation from the Depart23 ment of State, and the Department of State should 

24 continue to take steps to increase public awareness 
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1 about the risks and dangers of travel by United States 

2 citizens to North Korea; 

3 (6) the United States should continue to seek co4 operation from all foreign governments to allow the 

5 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 

6 (UNHCR) access to process North Korean refugees 

7 overseas for resettlement and to allow United States 

8 officials access to process refugees for resettlement in 

9 the United States (if that is the destination country 

10 of the refugees’ choosing); and 

11 (7) the Secretary of State, through diplomacy by 

12 senior officials, including United States ambassadors 

13 to Asia-Pacific countries, and in close cooperation 

14 with South Korea, should make every effort to pro15 mote the protection of North Korean refugees and de16 fectors. 

17 SEC. 4. RADIO BROADCASTING TO NORTH KOREA. 

18 Section 103(a) of the North Korean Human Rights Act 

19 of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7813(a)) is amended— 

20 (1) by striking ‘‘that the United States should fa21 cilitate’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘that the United 

22 States should— 

23 ‘‘(1) facilitate’’; 

24 (2) in paragraph (1), as redesignated by para25 graph (1) of this section— 
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1 (A) by striking ‘‘radio broadcasting’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘broadcasting, including news rebroad3 casting,’’; and 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘increase broadcasts’’ and 

5 inserting ‘‘increase such broadcasts, including 

6 news rebroadcasts,’’; and 

7 (C) by striking ‘‘Voice of America.’’ and in8 serting the following: ‘‘Voice of America; and’’; 

9 and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(2) expand funding for nongovernmental orga12 nization broadcasting efforts, prioritizing organiza13 tions that engage North Korean defectors in program14 ming and broadcast services.’’. 

15 SEC. 5. ACTIONS TO PROMOTE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION. 

16 Section 104(a) of the North Korean Human Rights Act 

17 of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7814(a)) is amended— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘The President’’ and inserting 

19 the following: 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President’’; 

21 (2) by inserting ‘‘, USB drives, micro SD cards, 

22 audio players, video players, cell phones, wi-fi, wire23 less internet, web pages, internet, wireless tele24 communications, and other electronic media that 

25 shares information’’ before the period at the end; and 
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1 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(2) DISTRIBUTION.—In accordance with the 

3 sense of Congress described in section 103, the Presi4 dent, acting through the Secretary of State, is author5 ized to distribute or provide grants to distribute in6 formation receiving devices, electronically readable de7 vices, and other informational sources into North 

8 Korea, including devices and informational sources 

9 specified in paragraph (1). To carry out this para10 graph, the President is authorized to issue regulations 

11 to facilitate the free-flow of information into North 

12 Korea. 

13 ‘‘(3) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT GRANT PRO14 GRAM.—In accordance with the authorization de15 scribed in paragraphs (1) and (2) to increase the 

16 availability and distribution of sources of information 

17 inside North Korea, the President, acting through the 

18 Secretary of State, is authorized to establish a grant 

19 program to make grants to eligible entities to develop 

20 or distribute (or both) new products or methods to 

21 allow North Koreans easier access to outside informa22 tion. Such program may involve public-private part23 nerships. 

24 ‘‘(4) CULTURE.—In accordance with the sense of 

25 Congress described in section 103, the Broadcasting 
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1 Board of Governors may broadcast American, Ko2 rean, Chinese, and other popular music, television, 

3 movies, and popular cultural references as part of its 

4 programming. 

5 ‘‘(5) RIGHTS AND LAWS.—In accordance with the 

6 sense of Congress described in section 103, the Broad7 casting Board of Governors should broadcast to North 

8 Korea in the Korean language information on rights, 

9 laws, and freedoms afforded through the North Korean 

10 Constitution, the Universal Declaration of Human 

11 Rights, the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on 

12 Human Rights in the Democratic People’s Republic 

13 of Korea, and any other applicable treaties or inter14 national agreements to which North Korea is bound. 

15 ‘‘(6) RELIGIOUS MINORITIES.—Efforts to im16 prove information access under this subsection should 

17 include religious communities and should be coordi18 nated with the Office of International Religious Free19 dom to ensure maximum impact in improving the 

20 rights of religious persons in North Korea. 

21 ‘‘(7) BROADCASTING REPORT.—Not later than— 

22 ‘‘(A) 180 days after the date of the enact23 ment of this paragraph, the Secretary of State, 

24 in consultation with the Broadcasting Board of 

25 Governors, shall submit to the appropriate con-
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1 gressional committees a report that sets forth a 

2 detailed plan for improving broadcasting content 

3 for the purpose of targeting new audiences and 

4 increasing listenership; and 

5 ‘‘(B) 1 year after the date of the enactment 

6 of this paragraph, and annually thereafter for 

7 each of the next 5 years, the Secretary of State, 

8 in consultation with the Broadcasting Board of 

9 Governors, shall submit to the appropriate con10 gressional committees a report including— 

11 ‘‘(i) a description of the effectiveness of 

12 actions taken pursuant to this section, in13 cluding data reflecting audience and 

14 listenership, device distribution and usage, 

15 and technological development and advance16 ment usage; 

17 ‘‘(ii) the amount of funds expended by 

18 the United States Government pursuant to 

19 section 403; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) other appropriate information 

21 necessary to fully inform Congress of efforts 

22 related to this section.’’. 
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1 SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON HUMANITARIAN COORDI2 NATION RELATED TO THE KOREAN PENIN3 SULA. 

4 Title III of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 

5 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7841 et seq.) is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 306. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON HUMANITARIAN CO8 ORDINATION RELATED TO THE KOREAN PE9 NINSULA. 

10 ‘‘It is the sense of Congress that— 

11 ‘‘(1) any instability on the Korean Peninsula 

12 could have significant humanitarian and strategic 

13 impact on the region and for United States national 

14 interests; and 

15 ‘‘(2) as such, the United States Government 

16 should work with countries sharing a land or mari17 time border with North Korea to develop long-term 

18 whole-of-government plans to coordinate efforts related 

19 to humanitarian assistance and human rights pro20 motion and to effectively assimilate North Korean de21 fectors.’’. 

22 SEC. 7. REAUTHORIZATION PROVISIONS. 

23 (a) SUPPORT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY

24 PROGRAMS.—Section 102 of the North Korean Human 

25 Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7812(b)(1)) is amended— 
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1 (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the 

2 following: ‘‘The President is also authorized to pro3 vide grants to entities to undertake research on North 

4 Korea’s denial of human rights, including on the po5 litical and military chains of command responsible 

6 for authorizing and implementing systemic human 

7 rights abuses, including at prison camps and deten8 tion facilities where political prisoners are held.’’; and 

9 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ‘‘2017’’ and 

10 inserting ‘‘2022’’. 

11 (b) ACTIONS TO PROMOTE FREEDOM OF INFORMA12 TION.—Section 104 of the North Korean Human Rights Act 

13 of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7814) is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (b)(1)— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘$2,000,000’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘$3,000,000’’; and 

17 (B) by striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘2022’’; and 

19 (2) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘2017’’ and in20 serting ‘‘2022’’. 

21 (c) REPORT BY SPECIAL ENVOY ON NORTH KOREAN

22 HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES.—Section 107(d) of the North Ko23 rean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7817(d)) is 

24 amended by striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting ‘‘2022’’. 
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1 (d) REPORT ON UNITED STATES HUMANITARIAN AS2 SISTANCE.—Section 201 of the North Korean Human 

3 Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7831 is amended— 

4 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

5 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘2022’’; 

7 (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection 

8 (c); and 

9 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the following 

10 new subsection: 

11 ‘‘(b) NEEDS ASSESSMENT.—The report shall include 

12 a needs assessment to inform the distribution of humani13 tarian assistance inside North Korea.’’. 

14 (e) ASSISTANCE PROVIDED OUTSIDE OF NORTH

15 KOREA.—Section 203(c)(1) of the North Korean Human 

16 Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7833(c)(1)) is amended by 

17 striking ‘‘2013 through 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘2018 through 

18 2022’’. 

19 (f) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Section 305(a) of the North 

20 Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7845(a)) is 

21 amended, in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by striking 

22 ‘‘2017’’ and inserting ‘‘2022’’. 

23 SEC. 8. REPORT BY BROADCASTING BOARD OF GOVERNORS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days after the 

25 date of the enactment of this Act, the Broadcasting Board 
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1 of Governors shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

2 committees a report that— 

3 (1) describes the status of current United States 

4 broadcasting to North Korea and the extent to which 

5 the Board has achieved the goal of 12-hour-per-day 

6 broadcasting to North Korea, in accordance with sec7 tion 103(a) of the North Korean Human Rights Act 

8 of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7813(a)); and 

9 (2) includes a strategy to overcome obstacles to 

10 such communication with the North Korean people, 

11 including through unrestricted, unmonitored, and in12 expensive electronic means. 

13 (b) FORM.—The report required under subsection (a) 

14 shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include a 

15 classified annex. 

16 (c) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES.—In 

17 this section, the term ‘‘appropriate congressional commit18 tees’’ means— 

19 (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 

20 Senate; 

21 (2) the Committee on Appropriations of the Sen22 ate; 

23 (3) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 

24 House of Representatives; and 
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1 (4) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

2 House of Representatives. 

3 SEC. 9. REPEAL OF DUPLICATIVE AUTHORIZATIONS. 

4 Section 403 of the North Korea Sanctions and Policy 

5 Enhancement Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–122; 22 U.S.C. 

6 9253) is hereby repealed. 

Attest: 

Secretary. 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H.R. 2061 

AMENDMENT