North Korea ‘paranoia’ is all about power

RECENT Amnesty International reports on North Korea and the United States would seem to give the lie to columnist Patrick Kenny’s glib designation of ‘civilised’ to western countries and ‘evil’ to North Korea (Irish Examiner, October 25).

Of course, the reports confirm North Korea has a serious human rights record with reports of “public executions, widespread political imprisonment, torture and ill-treatment”.

Moreover, the report on the US finds that the administration has resorted to “secret detention, enforced disappearance, torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”.