"I Was a Broker" (5)

"I Was a Broker" (5) Ryu Sang-JoonNorth Korean defector and activist Entered South Korea in 2000 Unable to sleep, I kept thinking over the plan in my head. Was it the end of July or early August that thepeople are going to escape for the North? The refugees that I would be helping would leave North Korea around the end of July or early August. They wanted to participate in the upcoming election..

Admin  |  2016-01-26 10:45:48  |  Hit 3772

"I Was a Broker" (4)

"I Was a Broker" (4) RYU Sang-JoonNorth Korean defector and activist Entered South Korea in 2000 Toward the end of 2006, someone had called me saying that they helped North Korean refugees and that they wanted my help in getting them into South Korea. I responded that I would be more than willing to help those who wanted to make a living for themselves in South Korea. However, I added that if ..

Admin  |  2016-01-26 10:43:52  |  Hit 3785

"I Was a Broker" (3)

"I Was a Broker" (3) RYU Sang-JoonNorth Korean defector and activist Entered South Korea in 2000 Where are they? Thought of not seeing my companions ever again scared me. Soon after, a few officers surrounded me and led me to a nondescript room. The room was large with two desks put together in the middle. There was also a sofa with a bookcase with wheels next to it. On the other side of the ..

Admin  |  2016-01-26 10:39:42  |  Hit 3981

"I Was a Broker" (2)

"I Was a Broker" (2) RYU Sang-JoonNorth Korean defector and activist Entered South Korea in 2000 One enters the prison through a big L-shaped iron door and then another L shaped iron door awaits on the left. After this second iron door is a long quarridor with 7-8 steel doors on either side. At first glance, one can easily understand that this place is a detention center. The prison cell is a ..

Admin  |  2016-01-26 10:38:20  |  Hit 3845

"I Was a Broker" (1)

"I Was a Broker" (1) RYU Sang-JoonNorth Korean defector and activist Entered South Korea in 2000 This is a memoir of a man who escaped North Korea in April of 1998, entered South Korea in 2000, where he became an activist. While on a mission to extricate other defected North Koreans in China, Ryu Sang-Joon was captured at the airport in August of 2007. He was released on the 16th of December 20..

Admin  |  2016-01-26 10:37:04  |  Hit 3874

My Life in Bowibu and Gyohwaso

My Life in Bowibu and Gyohwaso Mi-ran KIMFemale, Entered South Korea in March 2008 I entered the army after graduating from high school at 17. Only three students from my grade including myself could enter the army because of our good family backgrounds and allegiances to the Korean Worker’s Party. I worked as a military escort transporting munitions. I had risen to the rank of sergeant when ..

Admin  |  2016-01-26 10:33:48  |  Hit 3882

Moving from Japan to North Korea, and to South Korea Again

Moving from Japan to North Korea, and to South Korea Again Chul-Yoon KIM (Alias)Arrived in South Korea, in April 2008 Moving from Japan to North Korea I was born in Japan in 1963 when activities of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (GAKR, Chongryon) were the most lively. I learned about North Korea from my kindergarten days, which was affiliated with Chongryon, and envisioned..

Admin  |  2016-01-26 10:30:31  |  Hit 4598

Breaking Out of North Korea

Breaking Out of North Korea Chun-Hyeok KANG (Born in 1986)Escaped from North Korea in 1998Entered South Korea in 2002 1. “Breaking Out” of North KoreaEarly March of 1998 It was the voice of my father I heard half asleep. When I opened my eyes, my father and mother were looking down on me, at an hour which I could not tell whether it was night or dawn. “Let’s go!!!” It was a low and tr..

Admin  |  2016-01-25 18:10:38  |  Hit 4125

I was an English Teacher in North Korea

I was an English Teacher in North Korea Kyeong-ok KIM (alias)Escaped from the North in Apr. 2003, Entered the South in Jan. 2008 My Family and Life at School I was born in Musan County, North Hamgyong Province. My parents are currently in North Korea. They were both professional soldiers. I have four siblings who were all soldiers, too. I was married, and I have an ex-husband and a son in the N..

Admin  |  2016-01-25 18:06:06  |  Hit 4034

I Didn't Even Notice There's a Church in Pyongyang

I Didn't Even Notice There's a Church in Pyongyang Eun-Hye JEONG Manager/Missionary Work Chief, Baekdo Hanra Association, ROK Due to my belief in God and reading of the Bible, I was accused of criminal activity by the North Korean government and lost my father and aunt in the place, they call, the "Socialists' Paradise." After suffering from all the pressure, regulation and surveillance of the..

Admin  |  2016-01-25 18:02:33  |  Hit 4010