Seoul USA said that North Korea claims its internal problems outlined in a United Nations report are being caused by Christian missionaries.
In February, the UN's commission on human rights said the communist state's leadership is committing systematic and appalling human rights abuses against its own citizens on a scale unparalleled in the modern world and crimes against humanity with strong resemblances to those committed by the Nazis.
The CEO of Seoul USA, Revd Eric Foley, told Premier's Victoria Laurence on the News Hour that the government is choosing to blame Christian missionaries for its human rights problems and internal difficulties.
Shortly after the UN's latest report documenting widespread torture and abuse, North Korea jailed a South Korean Baptist for a lifetime of hard labour.
According to Release International, on May 30th, the Supreme Court found Kim Jong Uk guilty of spying and attempting to set up an underground church.
The following week, on June 6th, ABC news reported that North Korea arrested an American tourist for leaving a Bible in his hotel room.
The official Korean Central News Agency said Jeffrey Fowle had "engaged in activities that were in breach of DPRK's laws".
North Korea has also sentenced American Christian Kenneth Bae to 15 years' hard labour.
45 year-old Mr Bae was arrested in November 2012, charged with trying to bring down the government by promoting religious activities.
The US State Department estimates some 200,000 North Koreans are being held in labour camps, many for offences related to religion.
According to Seoul USA, up to 30,000 Christians are behind bars.
The UN's 400-page report, published by its Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in North Korea, condemned "systematic, widespread, and gross human rights violations", including a woman prisoner being forced to drown her new-born baby.
US special envoy Robert King expressed alarm at "the widespread use of forced labour, including child labour in detention facilities".
Speaking at the UN, he said the international community was also concerned about "violence against women, forced abduction of foreign nationals, and reports of torture and abuse in detention facilities".
Karen Pearce, Britain's ambassador, said that crimes against humanity were still being committed with impunity with fundamental freedoms of expression, assembly and of religion being denied.
The UK and the US called on Pyongyang to close its prison camps.
In a debate before the UN Council, North Korea's ambassador So Se Pyong, said: "There are in the north-eastern area of China so-called churches and priests exclusively engaged in hostile acts against the DPRK.
"They indoctrinate the illegal border crossers with anti-DPRK ideology and send them back to the DPRK with assignments of subversion, destruction, human trafficking and even terrorist acts."
North Korea was ranked as the No. 1 most oppressive country in the world for Christians for the past 12 years on Open Doors' annual World Watch List.
The group has said that the persecution Christians there experience is due largely to communist oppression and dictatorial paranoia.