Local civic groups said Monday they have asked a global human rights watchdog to downgrade the rating of the local rights commission amid allegations of sexual harassment involving its officials.
A coalition of 86 human rights activist groups said they asked the International Coordinating Committee of National Human Rights Institutions (ICC) in June to revise down the status of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK), citing its lack of sexual awareness and sensitivity to human rights.
In a letter sent to the ICC, the groups said the South Korean watchdog failed to comply with the list of responsibilities agreed upon at the United Nations General Assembly in 1993, known as the Paris Principles.
The ICC renews the status of national human rights institutions every five years. The NHRCK was ranked A in 2008 and awaits re-evaluation this year.
The groups' request comes after a female NHRCK employee alleged that she had been repeatedly molested by her seniors between February and September 2014.
The woman, whose identity has been withheld, said one of them verbally and physically harassed her at company-held dinners, while the other also forced inappropriate contact by dragging her by the hand or insisting that she greet him with a high-five.
A petition filed with the NHRCK in September was turned down, with the woman eventually taking a leave of absence and referring the case to the police on Nov. 1.
"Victims of sexual harassment often suffer greater trauma and confusion after seeking help from the NHRCK since it acts in an authoritarian manner and shuns responsibility," the groups said in the letter. (Yonhap)
