U.N. expert to probe conditions of North Korean workers abroad

By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - The U.N. human rights investigator for North Korea said on Monday that he would probe allegations of an estimated 20,000 North Koreans working in slave-like conditions abroad, mainly in China, Russia and the Middle East. Marzuki Darusman, U.N. special rapporteur on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), told Reuters that some of the North Korean workers are reported to be in Qatar helping build facilities for the 2022 World Cup. NK Watch put the number at more than 100,000 workers in 40 countries and said they earned $3 billion annually in foreign currency for the Pyongyang government. The Seoul-based rights group also called for an investigation into complicity by host countries. No reason was given for the discrepancy in the estimates. "The overseas workers, the North Korean bonded laborers, on a first take may involve as much as 20,000 North Korean workers outside of North Korea," Darusman told a news briefing after addressing the U.N. Human Rights Council. Initial information indicated that the majority worked in China and the Russian Federation, he said, reiterating his request to visit China to investigate. A U.N. commission of inquiry, which included Darusman, issued a report a year ago that documented killings, torture and political prison camps that it said amounted to crimes against humanity being committed by North Korea's government. Pyongyang denies the existence of the camps and any violations. North Korean diplomat Kim Yong-Ho, in a speech to the Geneva forum on Monday, again rejected the report as being based on false testimony and called for Darusman's resignation. Darusman, referring to overseas workers, told Reuters: "It has now emerged more and more visibly and therefore it is time to address the matter in a way that clarifies the real situation." He had received information about workers being "bonded laborers or slave laborers", in terms of their poor remuneration and long working hours. "A sizeable number are working in the Middle East also. These workers are being used to acquire foreign exchange for example," he added. Ahn Myeong Chul, a former North Korean guard who defected and is now executive director of NK Watch, said most worked in forestry, construction and restaurants. "The authorities are holding the families of North Korean workers so workers cannot escape the work site or complain about the conditions," he told reporters. (Editing by Alison Williams)