JANUARY 26, 2016 PROGRAM:
Korea Today
An estimated 200,000 North Korean defectors have escaped poverty and oppression of their government, hoping to reach safety in South Korea. To do so, these stateless people must undertake hazardous treks through China and other countries. If caught by Chinese authorities, they are deported immediately to North Korea, where they often face torture, imprisonment, or death. The media continues to ignore the 25 million people suffering in North Korea and focuses on nuclear weapons and representing the most oppressive and ruthless regime in the world as a joke. Despite this, various NGOs are coming together to address and support human rights in North Korea.
Hyon Kim, the founder and president of Freedom for North Korean Refugees of Minnesota, is a Twin Cities entrepreneur whose interest in North Korean refugees comes out of her personal life story. Like many other Korean Americans, Hyon comes from a family that was divided when Korea was divided into north and south after World War II, a condition that was supposed to be temporary but is still in place today. This diplomatic impasse has permanently separated an estimated 100,000 families.