Four major escaping routes to freedom that North Korean refugees and defectors are taking

How North Korean refugees and defectors escape from North Korea through China?

There are four major escaping routes to freedom that North Korean refugees and defectors are taking.

Escaping route of North Korean refugees to South Korea

Route 1 (New Route) : North Korea - China - Laos - Thailand - South Korea

   

Route 2 : North Korea - China - Myanmar - Thailand  - South Korea

    

Route 3 : North Korea - China - Vietnam - Cambodia  - South Korea

    

Route 4 : North Korea - China - Mongolia - South Korea

    

Some North Koreans take trains and buses, but some North Koreans walk.
In China North Korean refugees are not approved as "refugees" but illegal economic immigrants.
Some North Korean women are sold to poor Chinese families who have difficulty in finding Chinese brides. This is a kind of human trafficking.

If North Korean refugees are caught by Chinese police, they are expatriated back to North Korea. In North Korea they are considered as betrayers and they have to survive from severe torture. After they self-criticize themselves, they are put into labor prison for many years.

Some North Korean refugees and defects choose America according to North Korean Human Rights Law in 2014. It takes about one year for North Koreans to be permitted as refugees or defectors to America. About 210 North Korean refugees are living in America.

There are some non-profit organizations help North Korean refugees contact UNHCR (UN Refugee Agency) and go through all the procedures to freedom.

Who are those non-profit organizations?
How can North Korean refugees contact those non-profit organizations?



https://woodbridgenkinusa.blogspot.com/2017/09/change-game.html
https://seoulmusingsblog.wordpress.com/2016/08/17/the-plight-of-north-korean-refugees-defectors/
http://www.rfa.org/korean/in_focus/human_rights_defector/ne-yh-04252017163107.html

Translation service through cellular phone for North Korean refugees

 Volunteer translator and translation service through cellular phone are very useful for North Korean refugees.

 As far as I know, about 200 North Korean refugees live in the USA. All of them can speak English very well?

 English is a big obstacle that North Korean refugees are facing in their daily lives. Friends in church or neighbors help North Korean refugees communicate.

 How can we connect North Korean refugees and volunteer translators?

http://www.rfa.org/korean/weekly_program/canada_now/co-so-09192017093719.html

Michael Malice talks about North Korea

Michael Malice is a ukrainian american who wrote a book about North Korea called "dear reader"  (a play on words for dear leader). it's primarily about kim jong il.

http://kimjongilbook.com

In this presentation, he briefly talks about the history of Korea going way back to the 18th century, the culture, the situation now, the regime propaganda, etc. most of which we already know but there is a questions and answers session at the end.

At the 34 minute mark someone asks a question about Dennis Rodman and his meeting with Kim Jong Un. Michael Malice responds with a good point.

Being a "Shame for the Country"

  At the Oslo Freedom Forum held recently, activist and North Korean defector Ji Seon-ho described his adventure toward freedom.

  Being disabled (by an accident when he was trying to gather coal for family), he was never taken any care of by the government. On the contrary, he was often discriminated, alienated and even threatened, for "being a shame for the country".

  Currently he has settled in South Korea after escaping through Tuman river and walked for 6200 miles throughout South East Asia. He seeks to rescue the lives of his fellow nations.
He has set up an organization NAUH and hopes that one day no one will live in shame anymore regardless of any conditions.

  He stated that “Freedom isn’t something given by the government . It is a God-given right."

Recommended reading..

in order to live

Just finished this one the other day. excellent read.
at the end, it gives the reader some idea of the social stigma that North Koreans face once reaching the south.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1594206791/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

interview with Yeomni and Hanna Song

Finished inished "Under the Same Sky" by Joseph Kim...

https://www.amazon.com/Under-Same-Sky-Starvation-Salvation/dp/0544705270/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1503583938&sr=1-1&keywords=under+the+same+sky+joseph+kim

it's about a homeless kid in North Korea who becomes a christian and eventually finds his way to America.
it's a good read and even a bit humorous in parts.

Update:
i finished last night.
it was sad in the end because he still does not know what has become of his mother and sister.
he loved his sister Bong Sook especially but still has not been able to find her.
well. i just hope they are both ok at least.
when you read stories like this, it just makes you want the regime to fall even more.

here is an interview

personal stories via books and youtube are a good way to learn more about North Korea and they give a good idea of just how hard it is over there for the average person.

"a Thousand Miles to Freedom" by Eunsun Kim

https://www.amazon.com/Thousand-Miles-Freedom-Escape-North/dp/1250092841/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503583798&sr=8-1&keywords=Eunsun+Kim

i think this one will be an eye opener also.

here is an interview

very few of us in the west have ever experienced hunger like this...

now i'm on to this one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/4904399056/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
or here
http://www.asiapress.org/rimjin-gang/payment-methods/

it's pricey though but was lucky to pick it up for $20 second hand.

it has been compiled by Asiapress and Rimjin-gang magazine into a 500 page inside look at North Korea.

just started it last night and already learned something new.
part of the famine was caused by kim jong il's ego. that is, trying to rival the 1988 Seoul olympics with his own games.
this caused a huge amount of resources to be drained away from the people and then you had the communist bloc countries slowly converting from socialism to marketization but the NK regime did not see the collapse of the soviet uniion coming and did not prepare.
the importance of this was that the old soviet union would normally subsidize NK with oil and fertilizer but when it collapsed, it was not able to help.
i think kim jong il and his son was the worst thing that happened to North Korea.

however, the book aims to show how North Korea is rapidly being changed from within by its own people by taking things into their own hands.

Nothing to envy by Babara Demick

 just a superb piece of work that covers the lives of 6 North Koreans and their families.
took 15 years to complete.

 https://www.amazon.com/dp/0385523912/ref=rdr_ext_tmb

presentation by Barbara Demick

The Aquariums of Pyongyang: Ten Years in the North Korean Gulag

https://www.amazon.com/Aquariums-Pyongyang-Years-North-Korean/dp/0465011047/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1506496216&sr=8-1&keywords=the+aquariums+of+pyongyang+ten+years+in+the+north+korean+gulag

finished this one last night. another great read.
written by Kang Chol-Hwan, he and his family got sent to Yodok prison camp for something his grandfather allegedly did or said against the regime.
the story is mainly about life in the camp but some interesting reading in the last chapters about his time in china and south korea.

here is a short presentation from the author

Stars Between the Sun and Moon: One Woman's Life in North Korea and Escape to Freedom
 finished yesterday october 18, 2017

 

Lucia Jang escaped North Korea in the 90's
she went though a lot to get herself and her new born baby out of harms way.
she is a humble woman but with amazing strength and resolve.
she now lives in Canada.

here is an article by Susan McClelland, the journalist who helped Lucia write her memoir
https://www.vancouverobserver.com/culture/books/north-korean-defector-recalls-her-journey-freedom-new-memoir

here is a short video about her.
looks like a short news story on one of the local Canadian channels

 The Girl with Seven Names

https://smile.amazon.com/Girl-Seven-Names-Hyeonseo-Lee/dp/0007554850/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1509996564&sr=8-1&keywords=the+girl+with+seven+names&dpID=51Tw8A3o9sL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch

finished this last night nov 5, 2017

it's called an international best seller and it deserves that stamp.it's another amazing story and well written.
unusual in that the author and her family weren't driven from North Korea out of starvation and hoplessness.
Rather it was her curiosity that prompted her to take a trip to China before she turned 18 so that if she got caught, she wouldn't be thrown in prison. that one night of curiosity turned out to be an epic journey for her and her mother and brother.
just bizarre twists and turns thoughout the story.

here is a good interview from Hyeonseo. runs for nearly an hour but worth the time.

North Korea's Hidden Revolution: How the Information Underground Is Transforming a Closed Society

 https://www.amazon.com/North-Koreas-Hidden-Revolution-Transforming/dp/0300217811/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512571739&sr=8-1&keywords=north+korea+hidden+revolution

 

 

just finished.
another great read but Jieun is not a North Korean. she is an american korean who has taken a great interest in the human rights crisis in NK.
the main theme of the book is how outside information is slowly transforming North Korea in to a more independent and critical thinking population. particularly the jangmadang generation.
she has put a lot of hard work in to the book and has spoken to many defectors to put the book together.
she donates all proceeds of her book sales to NGO's who work to send outside information into North Korea.
that's really something.

here is an interview with Jieun about the book at the Korea Society

here is anotther video of the book launch

she also has her own website with writeups about the book and a blog which dosn't appear to be updated very much but there's still some good stuff in it some of which i've reposted already

https://jieunbaek.com/

escape from camp 14

 https://www.amazon.com/Escape-Camp-14-Remarkable-Odyssey/dp/0143122916/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1513619282&sr=1-1&keywords=escape+from+camp+14#reader_0143122916

the very first book i read on North Korea and the one that got me interested in North Korean affairs and i didn't even include it in the recommended reading list!

Shin was a former prisoner in total control zone camp 14. in fact, he was born there and it was only through hearing about meat from a fellow prisoner that he got curious enough to escape. he wasn't motivated by a better life because he didn't know any other life, it was just a child like curiosity for what meat might taste like that got him motivated.

Hey people, get on to this..

This is a great way to support NKinUSA who in turn support North Korean refugees.
We can help every time we purchase something via amazonSmile.

Just go to https://smile.amazon.com
Look over to the right hand side
Type in North Korean refugees in the united states. it will show up in the list.
Click on it and you are done.

So easy!

Yay!
My first purchase via amazon smile

Second one...

    

Today..

   

Change the Game !!!

  Sanctions and military coerce will never improve peaceful relation between countries.
To strengthen the ties, "Soft Power" such as Culture, Food, Arts, Education and Sports can me more effective than political solutions.

  Sometimes, building diplomacy with activities favored by the supreme leaders might also be a good idea. The supreme leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, seems to like basketball a lot since he was a kid.

  It's also said that Dennis Rodman, former NBA star, has dense friendship with Kim, and they even enjoyed dinner together! For Kim, Dennis is like his Star, Hero, and even God.

  Human beings are Emotional creatures, and we often judge things by our emotions. Hope this magic power can bring Peace to the world!