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Tuesday July 02, 2024

'Political housemaid': North Korea hurls misogynistic slurs at US envoy Julie Turner

The country hurled misogynistic terms calling her "political housemaid" and "wicked woman"

By Web Desk
August 02, 2023
The North Korean flag. — AFP/File
The North Korean flag. — AFP/File

A newly appointed US special envoy to oversee North Korea's human rights issues was insulted by the country on Wednesday amid rising tensions between the two nations.

The country reportedly threatened the US with unspecified security repercussions if Washington kept criticising its human rights practices.

The statement published by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) called Julie Turner a "wicked woman" chosen by the Biden administration as a "political housemaid" to launch groundless attacks on the country's human rights record.

Julie Turner, who served as the director of East Asia and the Pacific at the State Department, was confirmed special envoy by the US Senate on July 27.

According to the statement, the Biden administration's public condemnation of North Korea's human rights condition demonstrated its animosity towards Pyongyang in light of the two nations' escalating nuclear confrontation.

KCNA revealed that Turner's previous critiques of North Korea's record on human rights were deemed ludicrous in the statement, which also said that the US "revels in meddling in the internal affairs of a sovereign state and slandering it."

"Turner should know that she was chosen as a political housemaid and scapegoat for the 'human rights' plots to pressure the DPRK, a poor policy set forth by the Biden administration driven into a scrape in the DPRK-US nuclear confrontation," the agency said, using the initials of the North's formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, CBS News reported

Continued US criticism of North Korea's human rights violations, the CIA warned, might "backfire on it, spawning severe security issues."

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un recently hosted Russian and Chinese delegates at a Pyongyang military parade, showcasing intercontinental ballistic missiles designed to target the US.

Analysts believe Kim is aiming to increase the visibility of his partnerships with Moscow and Beijing, breaking away from diplomatic isolation and forming a united front against the US.

While the Korean Peninsula is experiencing its highest level of tension in years, the frequency of North Korean missile testing and joint military drills between the United States and South Korea has increased in a tit-for-tat cycle.

North Korea is sensitive to criticism of its leadership and government, often making harsh remarks towards US and South Korean officials.

The country's language is cruder when targeting women, with former South Korean President Park Geun-hye being called a prostitute and former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton a "funny lady" with a "primary schoolgirl" appearance.