5 North Koreans you should know besides Kim Jong-un’s sister
Kim Jong-un’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, made headlines this past weekend with her appearance at the Winter Olympics. While little is known about her, what we do know is that she doesn’t represent ordinary North Korean people.
Here are 5 North Koreans you should know:
1. Hyeonseo Lee
Hyeonseo saw her first public execution at the age of 7. Her belief that North Korea was a paradise slowly eroded from there. Curiosity eventually pushed her to cross into China in 1997. After complications with the North Korean police, she realized she could never return. She spent 10 years in China evading the authorities before safely making it to South Korea. Hyeonseo is known for her book The Girl with Seven Names and her continued activism in support of the North Korean people.
You can hear Hyeonseo share more about her life in this TED Talk.
2. Kang Chol-hwan
Kang Chol-hwan is the author of Aquariums of Pyongyang, an autobiography that tells the story of his life in North Korea. He spent 10 years in Yodok, one of North Korea’s most brutal political prison camps. After his release, he planned his defection and successfully resettled in South Korea. He founded North Korea Strategy Center in 2007 which sends USBs full of foreign media into North Korea and raises awareness about the regime’s human rights abuses.
“We are people who lived in absence of freedom. We know how precious it is. I want to give all these people their freedom, and the opportunity to live as humans. These are my friends, my family, and my fellow North Koreans.”
3. Thae Yong-Ho
Thae Yong-ho is one of the highest ranking North Korean officials to ever defect. He and his family defected in 2016 while he was serving as North Korea’s deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom. They now live in South Korea where Thae Yong-ho shares openly about the secretive and authoritarian North Korean regime.
One of his primary reasons for defecting was that he didn’t want his children to live in North Korea’s oppressive system.
“I could not take back the happy smiles of my sons by bringing them back to North Korea. I could not force my sons to pretend to be loyal to Kim Jong Un and the North Korean system and to shout “Long live the supreme leader Kim Jong Un!”, “Long live the socialist paradise of the DPRK!” — like I did all my life.”
4. Joseph Kim
Joseph Kim grew up during North Korea’s famine. He lost his father to starvation and became homeless after his mother disappeared. At 16 he left North Korea in search of food and to find his sister, staying in China until he was rescued with the help of Liberty in North Korea. Joseph is in his senior year in college in New York where he is studying Political Science. He talks about his journey in his book Under the Same Sky.
Watch Joseph’s TED Talk
“I confidently believe your act of love and caring can save another Joseph’s life”
5. Seongmin Lee
Seongmin started smuggling goods into China at the age of 12. He spent the next 10 years building a booming cross-border business that relied on bribing guards and military officers to keep products moving. Seongmin finally defected after becoming disillusioned with the North Korean system, and to be with his family. He’s now studying in New York City.
Read more about his story here
Seongmin’s story highlights the importance that the Jangmadang Generation plays in changing North Korea. This is North Korea’s millennial generation and they do not rely on the regime to provide for them. Instead they are driving meaningful change by operating businesses and consuming foreign media.
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