If there is one thing I've learned from going abroad, it's that we take the small things in life for granted. Today I had the pleasure of meeting eight North Korean refugees over dinner and had the chance to speak with one of them extensively. Many of my friends back home may know that I'm quite passionate about the various atrocities that occur in North Korea. The atrocities I speak of are what the people of North Korea go through on a daily basis, not what the government is portrayed as by American news stations. Liberty is a universal right, not a privilege.
The dinner started with an introduction by a man named 박상영 (Park Sangyoung). He set the tone by asking us a variety of questions, specifically pertaining to the meaning of risk. He asked us if we knew the weight of personal risk, the risk of defecting, the risk on family, the risk of life, and the risk of freedom. Do I think about these questions on a daily basis? Well, the answer is no. I don't think about the magnitude of these risks or how they shape my life, and that's because it's these small things that I've been blessed with not having to worry about. The haven of home is a bubble of ignorance that I've been naively sheltered by for the majority of my life, and these opportunities to go overseas and to meet incredible people continue to always shape my view of the world.
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After the introduction by 박상영, a group of refugees that spread to different tables in the room began to speak with us. I was fortunate to have the ever so wonderful 금향 (Geum Hyang) at our table to speak about her hardships. 금향 is twenty-five years old and defected from North Korea five years ago. Her journey begins when she crossed into China by swimming across a poorly monitored portion of the Yalu River. When she reached Chinese soil she banged on the door of a farmers house and begged for help in Korean. She had no Madarin skills at the time and also held the risk of being deported back to North Korea if found. Luckily, the first door she approached took her in and helped her seek refuge in China. She eventually made her way to a small city located in the Heilongjiang province, where she did field work for three years. She made a living in China by cutting corn on a daily basis and learning Mandarin through daily interactions. I was excited to communicate with her with both Korean and Mandarin. After three years of working, 금향 had saved up a reasonable some of money. With the money she had saved she decided to call a random number in South Korea. With this one phone call she asked the stranger on the other line to please help her get to South Korea. With the money she saved up she sent the money to this one person, where they proceeded to help her get to South Korea. She was instructed to travel to Laos and reach the South Korean Embassy. When 금향 finally reached Laos, her ticket was purchased by the before mentioned individual and she was off to South Korea. 금향 has now been living in South Korea for two years and has been taking classes at a school for North Korean refugees in Wonju.
금향 spoke about how life was in North Korea and how the rest of the world was portrayed when she was there. Her whole life she was led to believe that the world was something it is not. The North Korean government taught her that America and South Korea were the worse enemies in the world, and that China and Russia were great countries. China was considered a prosperous nation with too much to offer, while Americans were portrayed with super bright blonde hair and very long arched noses and South Koreans were just terrible. She also said that American dummies were set up in public to walk by and hit with bats as an act of humiliation. This was when I told her that I was a 재미교포 (American born Korean), and she was shocked, but in a good way.
"We were told that you guys were all monsters, but when I met you all for the first time laughing together and joking around a couple of weeks ago, all my fears and preconceived beliefs melted away. You're all kind and just human." -금향
Five students had the pleasure of living with the North Korean refugees while the other students had a host family for the first week of our program. This was the first time 금향 had met Americans. 금향 also said that she had never been in a prison camp, but she also said that she saw many of her friends get sent off the them to never return. She was taught that all of the surrounding countries did not want the unification of North and South Korea. She believed her whole life that what North Korea had said was true.
Meeting 금향 was an incredible experience. She had a tremendous amount of wisdom to offer and epitomized the meaning of optimism. She told us that in North Korea people were doing well. She also said that her family was doing well too. Her family is actually still in North Korea and she hasn't been in contact with them since she has left. No pictures of this event are shown for this very reason. Some of the refugees still have family members in North Korea, and if their identity is revealed it's considered an act of treson. Three generations of family members of known defectors will be sent to concentration camps for life where their identities will be stripped from the world. She says that she stills cries often because of how much she misses her parents and wishes she could be with them once again. She then said that doing well to the people of North Korea does not mean that they have bread on the table, stability in the homes, and a warm bed to sleep in. "You are doing well if you know in your heart and mind that you can survive," she said.
금향 was probably one of the most outgoing people I've ever met in my life. We asked her why she had such a glistening personality and her response was straight forward. She said that when she was in North Korea and even in China, she was extremely shy and always kept to herself. She was always in hiding, afraid, and a very fragile person. She says that the person she is today is someone that you would have never recognized five year back. What she then said was that, "If North Korea and South Korea unify some day, I want to be outgoing and confident so I can someday show my mom and dad the person I've become so I can make them proud of me."
금향 is in fact the most positive person I have met in my entire life, and any parent should be proud to have her as a daughter. She told us that she wishes for the unification of North Korea and South Korea. She says that some South Koreans believe in unification but many also do not believe in it. She says that the older generation holds a lot of hostility towards North Korea because of the atrocities that occurred during the Korean War. After this she said that that was the past and this is the future. She believes that we should forgive the sins of the past and move forward laughing and being happy together. Some people may read this and believe that it's not possible to do this, that it's ridiculous and naive to make this claim, and that 금향 doesn't know anything about what she's talking about. Well, I'm sorry if you feel that way, but words can barely describe the energy and passion that was given off from 금향. I agree in what she believes in, and whether it's possible or not, nothing will happen by doing nothing. Nothing will happen by ignoring the situation. Nothing will happen by not trying to at least increase awareness. What risks are you willing to take?
금향 is someone who has hopes and dreams just like anyone else. She wants to study for ten years then travel around the world. She wants to see the Pyramids of Giza, backpack across Europe, and see what America is truly all about. Meeting 금향 has been one of the most humbling experiences in my life and I couldn't be more happy to say that I met her.
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