North Korea agrees to visit from UN human rights expert for first time

Trip considered a minor concession after years of criticism of Pyongyang's poor human rights record

UN special rapporteur will look particularly at the condition of children living in the pariah state (Reuters)

North Korea has agreed to a visit by a United Nations human rights expert for the first time ever.

The organisation's Special Rapporteur on the rights of people with disabilities will travel to the country on 3 May for a five day stay, the UN announced on Thursday.

The trip is considered a minor concession after years of criticism of Pyongyang's record from the UN Human Rights Council.

The 47-state body is pushing for justice in North Korea for crimes against humanity it says have been committed.

North Korea has consistently denounced the Council's resolutions as a conspiracy by the United States and other “hostile forces”.

Its ally and neighbour China has tried to shield North Korea from scrutiny by not allowing any of a string of UN human rights investigators specifically focusing on North Korea to visit.

But in a U-turn move, Kim Jong-un has agreed to let Catalina Devandas-Aguilar, an independent expert designated by the council, visit Pyongyang and the South Hwanghae Province next month.

She will focus particularly on children with disabilities, a UN statement said.​

North Korea, also known as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), ratified the Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities in December 2016.

But last month North Korean diplomats boycotted a Council session on abuses in North Korea amid rising tension on the divided peninsula following its latest missile tests and two nuclear tests last year.

Ms Devandas-Aguilar plans to hold a press conference in Pyongyang at the end of her visit and to submit her findings next year.

She said in a statement: “My upcoming visit to DPRK represents a key opportunity to learn firsthand about national realities, laws, policies and programmes concerning people with disabilities, as well as the challenges and opportunities the Government faces in implementing the Convention."

Additional reporting by Reuters