The state controls all access to information. utilizing their control of the media to manipulate the population. Following the famine of 19941998. food shortages persist. and many residents are to this day suffering from hunger. Large numbers of North Koreans have fled these conditions. a significant percentage of which would likely fit the legal definition of refugees. The percentage of these refugees who are women is strikingly high. with recent estimates putting the figure potentially as high as 75%. an enormous increase from an estimated 20% only four to five years ago. though the reasons for this trend are unclear. Female refugees throughout the world face specific challenges. and. in China. any children born to North Korean women face an extremely uncertain future. In 2004. Congress passed the North Korea Human Rights Act with overwhelming bipartisan support. in an effort to refocus U.S. attention on the people of North Korea. This legislation provided humanitarian assistance to the North Korean people. as well as improved access to information through radio broadcasts and other activities and resources to help refugees fleeing the oppressive regime. This legislation also required the President to appoint a special envoy on North Korea. This legislation that we are considering reauthorizes this important bill. extending the 54.
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refugees