9 ms·

How I Escaped North Korea

84 points by Lightning 13y ago

hotshothenry 13y ago
I know it's cliche, but it definitely puts things in perspective and makes me realize how fortunate I am to have the life I have
anxx 13y ago
Touching story, but it leaves out the part that most intrigues me: how this person made it to the US. Who would give this person a visa? Illegal resident of China whose background you can't verify. Having been through the US visa application process, I am genuinely baffled that she was given a visa.
- criley 13y ago
  Refugee's are a separate category altogether -- did you go through the refugee process? This law: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korean_Human_Rights_Act_of_2004 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korean_Human_Rights_Act_o... offers details on how the US treats North Korean refugee's and should provide a springboard for more research.
  - anxx 13y ago
    Interesting, no I went through the regular process. Thanks fir the link.
- andor 13y ago
  From the interview linked at the bottom of the article [0]: I was sent back to North Korea three times and finally I escaped to South Korea. I was lucky because I got a scholarship from a organization, so I was able to come to the US to study English. The first time I went to China, I thought they were really rich because they ate rice and meat everyday. It was the same as I heard when I was in North Korea. Edit: She also mentions an organization called "Liberty in North Korea", which helps refugees to escape via China. China has an agreement with North Korea to send illegal immigrants back to their home country. Apparently, if you know the right people and pay some money, you can circumvent this agreement: [1] lists "rescue fees" as "Costs for fines, fees, and the network of partners and staff in the underground to bring refugees to safety". [0] http://interviews.kinja.com/how-did-you-end-up-making-it-to-the-us-after-fleeing-no-479817859 http://interviews.kinja.com/how-did-you-end-up-making-it-to-... [1] http://libertyinnorthkorea.org/rescue-teams-about/ http://libertyinnorthkorea.org/rescue-teams-about/
- fixxer 13y ago
  I've been addicted to these documentaries on Netflix lately, but they seem to glance over those precious details.
  - anxx 13y ago
    This is a general pet peeve of mine - I hate it when people present "rags to riches" or "prison to freedom" stories without giving a real sense of the "how" part. To me that is where the real story and the real character lies. Too often stories focus on the pain and suffering alone and the stories feel very incomplete to me. That is also why I kike reading biographies or autobiographies, because there finally the focus shifts from "what" to "how". update: this was a general comment, not specific to this article where the writer might need to protect her family and thus have good reason not to go into details.
- msoad 13y ago
  FBI Background check is not really accurate. I am from Iran. They can't really check the background of people form Iran and North Korea because those governments do not help FBI for background check. All they can access to is international flight information and anything outside of those countries. I saw an Iranian man in Ankara who were rejected for Green Card Lottery visa because he had a trip to North Korea (Iranians can go there without a visa). In a private talk he admitted that he was working for army and he was educated for missile stuff in N. Korea. My point is, if he never went to N.Korea, he could have make it to the US. Someone who worked for Iranian Missile Program. FBI background check is not accurate.
- umsm 13y ago
  You're assuming that everyone that enters the states received a visa. This is very far from the current state of affairs. Although I don't know exactly how the author came into the country, there are countless ways to sneak in.
- kyllo 13y ago
  Probably by way of South Korea. South Korea accepts North Korean defectors and grants them citizenship and various resettlement benefits (after first determining that they are not spies). South Koreans don't even need to apply for a visa to get into the US anymore, they are granted a tourist visa upon landing.
- DigitalTurk 13y ago
  Seems easy enough to verify. Just check what language they speak and with what accent.
zapdrive 13y ago
As touching as the story may be, it is not that different from billions of other children who are starving right now, all over India, China and African continent. I find it amusing that how we Americans love to bash North Korea and Iran. Does anyone know, that the Indian Government (under pressure from the World Bank to reduce poverty) just lowered the poverty line? According to the new poverty line, anyone who makes more than about 0.50 USD is not poor. By lowering the poverty line, they brought down the number of poor people in India from 42% to 35%. 66% of people in India live on less than 2 USD per day, in conditions similar to those in which the author lived. And India in not under any sanctions, or trade embargoes.
- threeseed 13y ago
  Exactly. I was in North Korea early this year and even in the rural outskirts it isn't comparable to the poverty you see in Africa. I guess Africa just isn't interesting enough.
  - devilshaircut 13y ago
    I don't understand either of the prior two comments. The article clearly wasn't written to garner sympathy, rather, to retell a personal experience that is likely foreign to most people, given the cloistered nature of North Korean society. As though only the most tragic stories possible are worth telling? Please.
    - zapdrive 13y ago
      I read an article on HN a while ago, about a guy who escaped from a North Korean prison camp. That shed light on something that we don't know much about. Now that was some escape. He is the only person to have ever escaped a North Korean prison camp. Again, as I said, the author did go through a lot of difficulties in her childhood. But in my opinion, this article is on the front page of HN, only because its about North Korea. Thousands of other people "escape" poverty and inhumane living conditions to reach US/Western countries from all over the world every year.
EternalFury 13y ago
Good job on finding your way to a better life. Remember those you left behind and work towards setting them free. As for the other comments here, there is no doubt there are many other countries all around the world that suffer poverty under the rule of totalitarian regimes. Many of them are supported or ignored depending on whether they can afford to buy stuff (mostly weapons) from leading powers. The first-hand report in this article does nothing to deny or highlight that simple fact. So, take it as the personal account that it truly is, and nothing else.

84 points by Lightning 13y ago

I know it's cliche, but it definitely puts things in perspective and makes me realize how fortunate I am to have the life I have

anxx 13y ago

Touching story, but it leaves out the part that most intrigues me: how this person made it to the US. Who would give this person a visa? Illegal resident of China whose background you can't verify. Having been through the US visa application process, I am genuinely baffled that she was given a visa.

criley 13y ago
Refugee's are a separate category altogether -- did you go through the refugee process? This law: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korean_Human_Rights_Act_of_2004 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korean_Human_Rights_Act_o... offers details on how the US treats North Korean refugee's and should provide a springboard for more research.
- anxx 13y ago
  Interesting, no I went through the regular process. Thanks fir the link.
andor 13y ago
From the interview linked at the bottom of the article [0]: I was sent back to North Korea three times and finally I escaped to South Korea. I was lucky because I got a scholarship from a organization, so I was able to come to the US to study English. The first time I went to China, I thought they were really rich because they ate rice and meat everyday. It was the same as I heard when I was in North Korea. Edit: She also mentions an organization called "Liberty in North Korea", which helps refugees to escape via China. China has an agreement with North Korea to send illegal immigrants back to their home country. Apparently, if you know the right people and pay some money, you can circumvent this agreement: [1] lists "rescue fees" as "Costs for fines, fees, and the network of partners and staff in the underground to bring refugees to safety". [0] http://interviews.kinja.com/how-did-you-end-up-making-it-to-the-us-after-fleeing-no-479817859 http://interviews.kinja.com/how-did-you-end-up-making-it-to-... [1] http://libertyinnorthkorea.org/rescue-teams-about/ http://libertyinnorthkorea.org/rescue-teams-about/
fixxer 13y ago
I've been addicted to these documentaries on Netflix lately, but they seem to glance over those precious details.
- anxx 13y ago
  This is a general pet peeve of mine - I hate it when people present "rags to riches" or "prison to freedom" stories without giving a real sense of the "how" part. To me that is where the real story and the real character lies. Too often stories focus on the pain and suffering alone and the stories feel very incomplete to me. That is also why I kike reading biographies or autobiographies, because there finally the focus shifts from "what" to "how". update: this was a general comment, not specific to this article where the writer might need to protect her family and thus have good reason not to go into details.
msoad 13y ago
FBI Background check is not really accurate. I am from Iran. They can't really check the background of people form Iran and North Korea because those governments do not help FBI for background check. All they can access to is international flight information and anything outside of those countries. I saw an Iranian man in Ankara who were rejected for Green Card Lottery visa because he had a trip to North Korea (Iranians can go there without a visa). In a private talk he admitted that he was working for army and he was educated for missile stuff in N. Korea. My point is, if he never went to N.Korea, he could have make it to the US. Someone who worked for Iranian Missile Program. FBI background check is not accurate.
umsm 13y ago
You're assuming that everyone that enters the states received a visa. This is very far from the current state of affairs. Although I don't know exactly how the author came into the country, there are countless ways to sneak in.
kyllo 13y ago
Probably by way of South Korea. South Korea accepts North Korean defectors and grants them citizenship and various resettlement benefits (after first determining that they are not spies). South Koreans don't even need to apply for a visa to get into the US anymore, they are granted a tourist visa upon landing.
DigitalTurk 13y ago
Seems easy enough to verify. Just check what language they speak and with what accent.

zapdrive 13y ago

As touching as the story may be, it is not that different from billions of other children who are starving right now, all over India, China and African continent. I find it amusing that how we Americans love to bash North Korea and Iran. Does anyone know, that the Indian Government (under pressure from the World Bank to reduce poverty) just lowered the poverty line? According to the new poverty line, anyone who makes more than about 0.50 USD is not poor. By lowering the poverty line, they brought down the number of poor people in India from 42% to 35%. 66% of people in India live on less than 2 USD per day, in conditions similar to those in which the author lived. And India in not under any sanctions, or trade embargoes.

threeseed 13y ago
Exactly. I was in North Korea early this year and even in the rural outskirts it isn't comparable to the poverty you see in Africa. I guess Africa just isn't interesting enough.
- devilshaircut 13y ago
  I don't understand either of the prior two comments. The article clearly wasn't written to garner sympathy, rather, to retell a personal experience that is likely foreign to most people, given the cloistered nature of North Korean society. As though only the most tragic stories possible are worth telling? Please.
  - zapdrive 13y ago
    I read an article on HN a while ago, about a guy who escaped from a North Korean prison camp. That shed light on something that we don't know much about. Now that was some escape. He is the only person to have ever escaped a North Korean prison camp. Again, as I said, the author did go through a lot of difficulties in her childhood. But in my opinion, this article is on the front page of HN, only because its about North Korea. Thousands of other people "escape" poverty and inhumane living conditions to reach US/Western countries from all over the world every year.

EternalFury 13y ago

Good job on finding your way to a better life. Remember those you left behind and work towards setting them free. As for the other comments here, there is no doubt there are many other countries all around the world that suffer poverty under the rule of totalitarian regimes. Many of them are supported or ignored depending on whether they can afford to buy stuff (mostly weapons) from leading powers. The first-hand report in this article does nothing to deny or highlight that simple fact. So, take it as the personal account that it truly is, and nothing else.