Yeonmi Park, then 13 years old, and her mother crossed the frozen Yalu River from North Korea to China in 2007. Human traffickers then sold the two into slavery. With the assistance of Christian missionaries, they were eventually able to travel to Mongolia and walk over the Gobi Desert to finally find shelter in South Korea, where Park, now 29 and a Columbia student, studied in college until moving there in 2016. After speaking at the One Young World Summit in Dublin, Ireland, in 2014, Park gained more widespread international recognition.
Park was born in Hyeasen, North Korea in 1993 and lived with her older sister, Eun-mi, and her parents, Park Jin-Sik and Byeon Keum. Her father was a member of the Workers’ Party of Korea and, following his position at a factory, Park Jin-Sik made the decision to smuggle Chinese cigarettes, clothing, and rice in order to boost his income. Although Yeonmi Park’s family lived in good conditions according to North Korean standards, they struggled after late 2002 following her father’s imprisonment for smuggling. Later on, her sister escaped to China without notifying the family.
North Korean individuals risk being imprisoned for viewing international films or listening to foreign music. To quell dissent, Kim Jong-un, the ruler of North Korea, ordered the burning of all cassette tapes and CDs that contained songs that the country had outlawed in 2015. Streaming American movies or disseminating pornography can result in execution. In North Korea, there are only three TV channels, and the government controls all of the programs. Watching an illegally imported DVD of the 1997 film Titanic, according to Park, let her comprehend the “oppressive nature” of the North Korean government and caused her perceptions of the ruling Kim family to change. She claims that the film gave her “a taste of freedom” and taught her what true love is all about. According to Park in a speech to One Young World,
“We aren’t free to sing, say, wear, or think what we want. North Korea is the only country in the world that executed people for making unauthorized international phone calls.”
After leaving the reeducation camp he was sent to, Park’s father reunited with his family and urged them to help his wife and daughters to escape to China as they feared the government would punish them for the older sister’s escape. Citizens of North Korea are not allowed to leave the nation, and border guards will shoot anyone who does so without identification. For individuals who attempt to flee or hide from Kim’s dictatorial authority, the most severe punishment is nearly usually death. In her speech, Park claimed,
“When I was four years old, I was warned by my mother not to even whisper, the birds and mice couldn’t hear me. I admit it: I thought the North Korean dictator could read my mind”
Although North Korea is known as the most difficult country to escape from, people who do try to escape have some routes to go through. The border between North Korea and South Korea, for instance, is an option but it is completely covered by guards that are ordered to kill whoever they see to escape. Nevertheless, the appeal of escaping to either South Korea or Japan is that, if you are caught there the officials will not deport you back to North Korea. On the other hand, China and Russia will report refugees back despite the borders being less guarded.
Park and her mother entered China on the night of March 30, 2007, using human smugglers to help them cross the frozen Yalu River and three mountains. Once in China, one of the brokers allegedly tried to rape Park, but her mother gave herself instead and was sexually assaulted, according to Park. In the end, her mother was given to a Chinese farmer in the countryside for the purpose of marriage.
In Park’s story, she and her smuggler entered into a form of business partnership in which he promised to reconnect her with her parents in exchange for her becoming his “xiao-Xifu,” or mistress. The alternative was to be deported to North Korea, where one would certainly face jail or death. In her speech, Park remembered,
There is a saying in North Korea: “Women are weak, but mothers are strong […] 70% of North Korean women teenage girls are being victimized, sometimes sold for as little as $200.
Although Park and her mother had successfully crossed the border to China, the human traffickers did not send any news about Park’s sister. In 2007, Park’s father crossed the border to China and, there, he was diagnosed with cancer and died in January 2008.
In 2009, Park and her mother, after living in secret for 2 years, received aid from human rights activists and missionaries. There, the mother and daughter planned to flee to South Korea through Mongolia.
In mid-2009, Yeonmi Park and Byeon Keum were successfully sent to the Seoul Incheon International Airport and successfully arrived in South Korea. In South Korea, Park joined a support center for North Korean refugees, Hanawon (the house of unity). The MOU states that the Hanawon’s goal is to assist North Korean refugees in finding the motivation to “achieve mental stability, overcome cultural difficulties, and become socially and economically independent.”
Hanawon curriculum
After successfully escaping, Park applied and got accepted to Columbia University where she majored in economics. Ever since leaving North Korea, the young activist has written and spoken about her escape and life as a North Korean. In an article for The Washington Post, Park claims that she is part of the “Black Market Generation” in North Korea which has no devotion to the Kim family and has had more content with the outside media through bootleg versions of western movies. According to Park’s article,
“North Koreans who have grown up watching such entertainments as I did and know they are not as dangerous as the regime has claimed for decades will be unlikely to enforce censorship once they are in positions of influence”.
Yeonmi Park’s story is definitely not the only one about escaping North Korea but is an important one to be remembered. Nowadays Park actively advocates for the safety and liberty of people from North Korea. Nevertheless, we, as Western people, might feel as being unable to help those with a similar background to Park. Therefore, the best way to start thinking about them is to get information and knowledge about this issue. We must avoid the temptation to do nothing and help people that are being brainwashed by the Kim dynasty.
EAC PRESS 