Seoul Steps Up

South Korea's new President Lee Myung-bak has done more for North Korean human rights in the past week than his predecessor did in his entire five-year term. The question now is whether Mr. Lee can withstand the North's intimidation tactics and stick to his guns.

On Thursday, South Korea cast a vote at the United Nations Human Rights Council to extend the mandate of the special rapporteur monitoring rights in North Korea. Under former President Roh Moo-hyun, Seoul had abstained from almost all such votes for fear of angering Pyongyang.

Mr. Lee's government also announced last week that the National Human Rights Commission would interview North Korean defectors for a study of the abuses they had faced before leaving. Given the state of human rights in the North, it's sure to be a shocking read. Any whiff of political dissent is punishable by imprisonment, forced labor or worse for the "offender" and his family. Tens of thousands of people are rotting in a system of prison camps. And that's setting aside the run-of-the-mill starvation as Kim Jong Il diverts aid for his own uses.

The new focus on human rights comes as Seoul starts placing greater emphasis on accountability from the North in six-party talks. Unification Minister Kim Ha-joong last week said "the speed and scope of . . . development in inter-Korean relations will be decided according to progress in the North Korean nuclear issue." That's a marked change in tone from a ministry with a history of appeasement. Meanwhile, a top general briefly discussed contingency plans in case of an attack from the North, breaking a longstanding taboo on such "provocative" talk.

Kim Jong Il responded to all this with typical saber-rattling. North Korean ships fired missiles into the Yellow Sea and fighter jets reportedly approached the demilitarized zone. Pyongyang also booted 11 South Koreans from the North-South industrial project at Kaesong.

Only a month into Mr. Lee's term, it's still too soon to say whether his resolve will last. Skeptics say he's playing to his conservative base ahead of National Assembly elections next week. Still, Mr. Lee's commitment to accountability is commendable. "I love North Korean people," he said last week, ". . .and I believe the North Korean people should get to a point where they can enjoy the minimum basic happiness of human beings."