Chris Smith: “I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, the North Korean dictatorship is an existential threat that requires…”

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, the North Korean dictatorship is an existential threat that requires significantly enhanced vigilance and response. The North Korea Sanctions Enforcement Act of 2016, authored by Chairman Ed Royce, will ensure that the Obama administration takes meaningful action to mitigate North Korea's cruelty, human rights abuse, and military danger. The U.S. can no longer sit on the sidelines while Kim Jong-un proliferates nuclear and missile technology and abuses and starves the North Korean people. North Korea violates every single human right enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. North Korea is listed by the State Department as a tier 3 country with respect to human trafficking. It is designated as one of eight Countries of Particular Concern for engaging in egregious violations of religious freedom. Mr. Speaker, I have chaired four hearings on human rights abuses in North Korea. It is, as Chairman Royce noted, a house of horrors. The U.N. Commission of Inquiry on North Korea recommended that the U.N. impose targeted sanctions on North Korean leaders responsible for these crimes against humanity. However, China blocks effective U.N. actions. This, in part, is why the Congress and the administration must act now. North Korean human rights abusers must be identified and listed so that sanctions can be appropriately applied.…”