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[Human Rights Awareness Improvement Program] North and South Korean Writers Speak of Hope: People Met at North Korean Refugee Relief Sites (20180621)

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On June 21, 2018, at 7 PM, <Lee Ji-sung × Lee Sung-joo: Speaking of Hope - People Met on the North Korean Refugee Relief Frontline> was held at Space Raon in Gwanghwamun, sponsored by Unification and Sharing. Despite the late hour, attendees showed interest in the North Korean refugee issue and participated. This talk concert began with vivid footage shot on location. While many scenes featuring activists' faces were deleted, it was sufficient to convey the reality of the North Korean refugee relief field. Lee Ji-sung, born in the South, is a bestselling author known for works like <The Dreaming Attic> and <Lead Through Reading>, which explore dreams. Lee Sung-joo, born in the North, authored <The Street Boy's Shoes>, documenting life in North Korea, and <My 123 English Study>, a book on English learning methods discovered after settling in South Korea. This talk concert featured the two authors sharing urgent, life-and-death stories they witnessed firsthand at the relief site about North Korean refugees. Regarding his involvement in North Korean refugee relief, author Lee Ji-sung shared that while engaged in social contribution activities like humanities education volunteering and school construction in underdeveloped countries, he met author Lee Sung-joo through an acquaintance. This encounter opened his eyes to the reality of North Korean refugees, leading him to participate in relief missions. Author Lee Sung-joo began North Korean refugee relief work to search for his mother, who went missing at age twelve while leaving home to find food. Driven by the hope she might be his mother, he rescued a middle-aged North Korean female refugee. Though initially devastated to learn she wasn't his mother, he later realized she was no different from his own mother. Since then, he said, every person he rescues feels like a father, mother, or sibling, which is why he continues this work. Although writer Lee Ji-sung believed he was well-hardened to danger from volunteering in overseas refugee camps and Islamic State (IS) occupied territories, he said the North Korean refugee rescue sites presented situations he had never encountered before, causing suffocating, life-threatening breathing difficulties. This seemed to speak volumes about the perilous journeys of North Korean refugees. If we, visiting the site with secure status, experienced this, it was impossible to fathom the sheer terror endured by North Korean refugees moving across mountains and rivers, evading the eyes of the police.


After the two authors finished sharing their stories from the relief site, there was a Q&A session with the audience. Questions filled two large boards covered in Post-it notes. When asked what efforts we can make for unification, writer Lee Sung-joo stated that while unification is often discussed in economic and political terms, we must first remember that unification is about the meeting of people living in North and South Korea. Therefore, he said, rescuing North Korean refugees who have fled and are wandering is the first step toward unification. Rescuing North Korean refugees is crucial for two main reasons. First, it allows us to experience a small-scale version of unification through the North Koreans who safely arrive in South Korea. Second, once settled in South Korean society, these refugees work hard and send the money they earn back to relatives struggling in North Korea. This money flowing into North Korea fuels the local markets, and the people who learn about market economics and choice through this process can become a force for change within North Korea. After the talk concert ended, a long line formed beside the two authors as people sought to ask questions they hadn't had time for. Some attendees, learning about the North Korean refugee issue for the first time through this event, joined the Citizens' Coalition. Existing members also shared their appreciation, noting they rarely had opportunities to hear such stories.