Women's Rights under the North Korean Division System

Key Chapter Title List

1. Executive Summary
2. Introduction
3. Landmines and Unexploded Ordnance
4. US Military Bases
5. Separated Families
6. Policy Recommendations
7. Conclusion

Document Introduction

Against the backdrop of intensifying US-China strategic competition and the prominence of a new Cold War structure, the security crisis on the Korean Peninsula continues to deepen, with escalating militarization and a further exacerbation of inter-Korean confrontation. This division system not only hinders the peninsula's peace and reconciliation process but also has profound and often overlooked impacts on the human rights situation, with women emerging as one of the primary victims of geopolitical gamesmanship and the lingering effects of war.

This report, released in March 2025 by the leading global organization for peace on the Korean Peninsula, Women Cross DMZ, focuses on the specific hardships faced by women over the 80 years of the peninsula's division, centering on three key issues: the threat of landmines, the presence of US military bases, and family separation. Through historical tracing, case analysis, and comparison with international human rights frameworks, the report reveals how the division system systematically exacerbates the infringement of women's rights and the lack of a gender perspective in existing response measures.

At the specific issue level, the report points out that the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), as the area with the highest density of landmines globally, continues to pose a threat to the safety of female civilians engaged in agricultural production due to its legacy of landmines and unexploded ordnance. Both North and South Korea's demining operations and victim assistance mechanisms lack gender-responsive measures. The presence and expansion of US military bases in South Korea cause dual harm: on one hand, women in the base villages (kijichon) surrounding the bases have long suffered systematic sexual violence and exploitation, perpetuating the historical trauma of the "comfort women" system; on the other hand, the expansion of bases like Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek has led to a significant loss of land for many female farmers, severely disrupting their livelihoods. Furthermore, among the millions of families separated by the Korean War, women bear the primary emotional, social, and economic burdens. The stagnation of official family reunion programs and travel restrictions are causing the hope for reunion for this generation to gradually fade.

Based on international standards such as United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, the report emphasizes that human rights protection must transcend geopolitical confrontation and adopt a comprehensive and pragmatic approach. Research data and cases are drawn from field records of international organizations, official statistics from North and South Korea, and survivor testimonies, including the personal experiences of numerous female victims, providing a solid empirical foundation for the analysis.

Finally, the report proposes four core recommendations: constructing a comprehensive and pragmatic human rights protection framework; formulating landmine governance legislation that considers gender impact; establishing an accountability mechanism for survivors of militarized violence; and resuming separated family reunions while lifting travel restrictions. These recommendations aim to integrate a women's perspective into the peninsula's peace process, promote the dismantling of the division system by safeguarding women's rights, and offer new ideas for achieving lasting peace and human security on the peninsula.