1
00:00:00,357 --> 00:00:01,708
When I was little,

2
00:00:01,708 --> 00:00:05,070
I thought my country was the best on the planet,

3
00:00:05,070 --> 00:00:08,445
and I grew up singing a song called "Nothing To Envy."

4
00:00:08,445 --> 00:00:11,080
And I was very proud.

5
00:00:11,080 --> 00:00:12,868
In school, we spent a lot of time

6
00:00:12,868 --> 00:00:14,629
studying the history of Kim Il-Sung,

7
00:00:14,629 --> 00:00:18,571
but we never learned much about the outside world,

8
00:00:18,571 --> 00:00:23,521
except that America, South Korea, Japan are the enemies.

9
00:00:23,521 --> 00:00:26,735
Although I often wondered about the outside world,

10
00:00:26,735 --> 00:00:30,883
I thought I would spend my entire life in North Korea,

11
00:00:30,883 --> 00:00:34,587
until everything suddenly changed.

12
00:00:34,587 --> 00:00:39,347
When I was seven years old, I saw my first public execution,

13
00:00:39,347 --> 00:00:42,605
but I thought my life in North Korea was normal.

14
00:00:42,605 --> 00:00:44,717
My family was not poor,

15
00:00:44,717 --> 00:00:48,250
and myself, I had never experienced hunger.

16
00:00:48,250 --> 00:00:52,753
But one day, in 1995, my mom brought home a letter

17
00:00:52,753 --> 00:00:54,816
from a coworker's sister.

18
00:00:54,816 --> 00:00:59,950
It read, "When you read this, all five family members

19
00:00:59,950 --> 00:01:02,690
will not exist in this world,

20
00:01:02,690 --> 00:01:06,841
because we haven't eaten for the past two weeks.

21
00:01:06,841 --> 00:01:09,313
We are lying on the floor together,

22
00:01:09,313 --> 00:01:18,024
and our bodies are so weak we are ready to die."

23
00:01:18,024 --> 00:01:21,331
I was so shocked.

24
00:01:21,331 --> 00:01:23,477
This was the first time I heard

25
00:01:23,477 --> 00:01:27,714
that people in my country were suffering.

26
00:01:27,714 --> 00:01:31,024
Soon after, when I was walking past a train station,

27
00:01:31,024 --> 00:01:32,409
I saw something terrible

28
00:01:32,409 --> 00:01:36,233
that I can't erase from my memory.

29
00:01:36,233 --> 00:01:39,401
A lifeless woman was lying on the ground,

30
00:01:39,401 --> 00:01:42,590
while an emaciated child in her arms

31
00:01:42,590 --> 00:01:47,000
just stared helpessly at his mother's face.

32
00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:51,240
But nobody helped them, because they were so focused

33
00:01:51,240 --> 00:01:55,865
on taking care of themselves and their families.

34
00:01:55,865 --> 00:01:59,982
A huge famine hit North Korea in the mid-1990s.

35
00:01:59,982 --> 00:02:02,717
Ultimately, more than a million North Koreans

36
00:02:02,717 --> 00:02:06,034
died during the famine, and many only survived

37
00:02:06,034 --> 00:02:11,683
by eating grass, bugs and tree bark.

38
00:02:11,683 --> 00:02:14,967
Power outages also became more and more frequent,

39
00:02:14,967 --> 00:02:19,324
so everything around me was completely dark at night

40
00:02:19,324 --> 00:02:21,876
except for the sea of lights in China,

41
00:02:21,876 --> 00:02:24,356
just across the river from my home.

42
00:02:24,356 --> 00:02:29,680
I always wondered why they had lights but we didn't.

43
00:02:29,680 --> 00:02:34,024
This is a satellite picture showing North Korea at night

44
00:02:34,024 --> 00:02:37,436
compared to neighbors.

45
00:02:37,436 --> 00:02:39,379
This is the Amrok River,

46
00:02:39,379 --> 00:02:41,750
which serves as a part of the border

47
00:02:41,750 --> 00:02:44,434
between North Korea and China.

48
00:02:44,434 --> 00:02:46,898
As you can see, the river can be very narrow

49
00:02:46,898 --> 00:02:52,894
at certain points, allowing North Koreans to secretly cross.

50
00:02:52,894 --> 00:02:54,518
But many die.

51
00:02:54,518 --> 00:03:01,984
Sometimes, I saw dead bodies floating down the river.

52
00:03:01,984 --> 00:03:06,924
I can't reveal many details [about] how I left North Korea,

53
00:03:06,924 --> 00:03:11,187
but I only can say that during the ugly years of the famine

54
00:03:11,187 --> 00:03:16,490
I was sent to China to live with distant relatives.

55
00:03:16,490 --> 00:03:18,190
But I only thought

56
00:03:18,190 --> 00:03:22,477
that I would be separated from my family for a short time.

57
00:03:22,477 --> 00:03:24,169
I could have never imagined

58
00:03:24,169 --> 00:03:28,662
that it would take 14 years to live together.

59
00:03:28,662 --> 00:03:33,086
In China, it was hard living as a young girl without my family.

60
00:03:33,086 --> 00:03:36,429
I had no idea what life was going to be like

61
00:03:36,429 --> 00:03:38,266
as a North Korean refugee,

62
00:03:38,266 --> 00:03:41,802
but I soon learned it's not only extremely difficult,

63
00:03:41,802 --> 00:03:44,449
it's also very dangerous,

64
00:03:44,449 --> 00:03:49,339
since North Korean refugees are considered in China

65
00:03:49,339 --> 00:03:52,178
as illegal migrants.

66
00:03:52,178 --> 00:03:54,452
So I was living in constant fear

67
00:03:54,452 --> 00:03:56,995
that my identity could be revealed,

68
00:03:56,995 --> 00:04:00,132
and I would be repatriated to a horrible fate

69
00:04:00,132 --> 00:04:02,888
back in North Korea.

70
00:04:02,888 --> 00:04:05,600
One day, my worst nightmare came true,

71
00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:08,438
when I was caught by the Chinese police

72
00:04:08,438 --> 00:04:12,437
and brought to the police station for interrogation.

73
00:04:12,437 --> 00:04:15,875
Someone had accused me of being North Korean,

74
00:04:15,875 --> 00:04:19,560
so they tested my Chinese language abilities

75
00:04:19,560 --> 00:04:22,883
and asked me tons of questions.

76
00:04:22,883 --> 00:04:25,156
I was so scared,

77
00:04:25,156 --> 00:04:28,164
I thought my heart was going to explode.

78
00:04:28,164 --> 00:04:31,662
If anything seemed unnatural, I could be imprisoned

79
00:04:31,662 --> 00:04:33,846
and repatriated.

80
00:04:33,846 --> 00:04:36,293
I thought my life was over,

81
00:04:36,293 --> 00:04:39,532
but I managed to control all the emotions inside me

82
00:04:39,532 --> 00:04:41,490
and answer the questions.

83
00:04:41,490 --> 00:04:43,662
After they finished questioning me,

84
00:04:43,662 --> 00:04:45,787
one official said to another,

85
00:04:45,787 --> 00:04:47,865
"This was a false report.

86
00:04:47,865 --> 00:04:49,797
She's not North Korean."

87
00:04:49,797 --> 00:04:54,019
And they let me go. It was a miracle.

88
00:04:54,019 --> 00:04:56,890
Some North Koreans in China seek asylum

89
00:04:56,890 --> 00:04:59,213
in foreign embassies,

90
00:04:59,213 --> 00:05:02,529
but many can be caught by the Chinese police

91
00:05:02,529 --> 00:05:03,989
and repatriated.

92
00:05:03,989 --> 00:05:06,166
These girls were so lucky.

93
00:05:06,166 --> 00:05:07,782
Even though they were caught,

94
00:05:07,782 --> 00:05:09,136
they were eventually released

95
00:05:09,136 --> 00:05:12,484
after heavy international pressure.

96
00:05:12,484 --> 00:05:15,825
These North Koreans were not so lucky.

97
00:05:15,825 --> 00:05:19,740
Every year, countless North Koreans are caught in China

98
00:05:19,740 --> 00:05:22,452
and repatriated to North Korea,

99
00:05:22,452 --> 00:05:25,986
where they can be tortured, imprisoned

100
00:05:25,986 --> 00:05:28,777
or publicly executed.

101
00:05:28,777 --> 00:05:31,881
Even though I was really fortunate to get out,

102
00:05:31,881 --> 00:05:34,939
many other North Koreans have not been so lucky.

103
00:05:34,939 --> 00:05:38,740
It's tragic that North Koreans have to hide their identities

104
00:05:38,740 --> 00:05:42,934
and struggle so hard just to survive.

105
00:05:42,934 --> 00:05:45,972
Even after learning a new language and getting a job,

106
00:05:45,972 --> 00:05:49,853
their whole world can be turned upside down in an instant.

107
00:05:49,853 --> 00:05:53,589
That's why, after 10 years of hiding my identity,

108
00:05:53,589 --> 00:05:57,871
I decided to risk going to South Korea,

109
00:05:57,871 --> 00:06:00,946
and I started a new life yet again.

110
00:06:00,946 --> 00:06:04,089
Settling down in South Korea was a lot more challenging

111
00:06:04,089 --> 00:06:06,149
than I had expected.

112
00:06:06,149 --> 00:06:09,578
English was so important in South Korea,

113
00:06:09,578 --> 00:06:12,861
so I had to start learning my third language.

114
00:06:12,861 --> 00:06:16,038
Also, I realized there was a wide gap

115
00:06:16,038 --> 00:06:18,021
between North and South.

116
00:06:18,021 --> 00:06:20,198
We are all Korean, but inside,

117
00:06:20,198 --> 00:06:22,038
we have become very different

118
00:06:22,038 --> 00:06:25,630
due to 67 years of division.

119
00:06:25,630 --> 00:06:29,669
I even went through an identity crisis.

120
00:06:29,669 --> 00:06:32,909
Am I South Korean or North Korean?

121
00:06:32,909 --> 00:06:35,868
Where am I from? Who am I?

122
00:06:35,868 --> 00:06:37,904
Suddenly, there was no country

123
00:06:37,904 --> 00:06:43,315
I could proudly call my own.

124
00:06:43,315 --> 00:06:47,306
Even though adjusting to life in South Korea was not easy,

125
00:06:47,306 --> 00:06:48,482
I made a plan.

126
00:06:48,482 --> 00:06:51,935
I started studying for the university entrance exam.

127
00:06:51,935 --> 00:06:55,950
Just as I was starting to get used to my new life,

128
00:06:55,950 --> 00:06:58,493
I received a shocking phone call.

129
00:06:58,493 --> 00:06:59,914
The North Korean authorities

130
00:06:59,914 --> 00:07:02,626
intercepted some money that I sent to my family,

131
00:07:02,626 --> 00:07:05,358
and, as a punishment, my family was going

132
00:07:05,358 --> 00:07:07,695
to be forcibly removed

133
00:07:07,695 --> 00:07:11,163
to a desolate location in the countryside.

134
00:07:11,163 --> 00:07:13,883
They had to get out quickly,

135
00:07:13,883 --> 00:07:17,448
so I started planning how to help them escape.

136
00:07:17,448 --> 00:07:20,930
North Koreans have to travel incredible distances

137
00:07:20,930 --> 00:07:23,559
on the path to freedom.

138
00:07:23,559 --> 00:07:26,382
It's almost impossible to cross the border

139
00:07:26,382 --> 00:07:29,240
between North Korea and South Korea,

140
00:07:29,240 --> 00:07:32,706
so, ironically, I took a flight back to China

141
00:07:32,706 --> 00:07:36,328
and I headed toward the North Korean border.

142
00:07:36,328 --> 00:07:39,192
Since my family couldn't speak Chinese,

143
00:07:39,192 --> 00:07:41,408
I had to guide them,

144
00:07:41,408 --> 00:07:45,211
somehow, through more than 2,000 miles in China

145
00:07:45,211 --> 00:07:48,474
and then into Southeast Asia.

146
00:07:48,474 --> 00:07:51,016
The journey by bus took one week,

147
00:07:51,016 --> 00:07:54,031
and we were almost caught several times.

148
00:07:54,031 --> 00:07:56,672
One time, our bus was stopped

149
00:07:56,672 --> 00:08:01,131
and boarded by a Chinese police officer.

150
00:08:01,131 --> 00:08:03,234
He took everyone's I.D. cards,

151
00:08:03,234 --> 00:08:05,867
and he started asking them questions.

152
00:08:05,867 --> 00:08:09,462
Since my family couldn't understand Chinese,

153
00:08:09,462 --> 00:08:13,596
I thought my family was going to be arrested.

154
00:08:13,596 --> 00:08:16,577
As the Chinese officer approached my family,

155
00:08:16,577 --> 00:08:19,086
I impulsively stood up, and I told him

156
00:08:19,086 --> 00:08:21,753
that these are deaf and dumb people

157
00:08:21,753 --> 00:08:23,958
that I was chaperoning.

158
00:08:23,958 --> 00:08:26,132
He looked at me suspiciously,

159
00:08:26,132 --> 00:08:30,016
but luckily he believed me.

160
00:08:30,016 --> 00:08:33,127
We made it all the way to the border of Laos,

161
00:08:33,127 --> 00:08:37,754
but I had to spend almost all my money

162
00:08:37,754 --> 00:08:40,498
to bribe the border guards in Laos.

163
00:08:40,498 --> 00:08:43,351
But even after we got past the border,

164
00:08:43,351 --> 00:08:46,256
my family was arrested and jailed

165
00:08:46,256 --> 00:08:48,765
for illegal border crossing.

166
00:08:48,765 --> 00:08:50,981
After I paid the fine and bribe,

167
00:08:50,981 --> 00:08:54,570
my family was released in one month,

168
00:08:54,570 --> 00:08:58,386
but soon after, my family was arrested and jailed again

169
00:08:58,386 --> 00:09:00,825
in the capital of Laos.

170
00:09:00,825 --> 00:09:05,393
This was one of the lowest points in my life.

171
00:09:05,393 --> 00:09:10,782
I did everything to get my family to freedom,

172
00:09:10,782 --> 00:09:13,156
and we came so close,

173
00:09:13,156 --> 00:09:15,453
but my family was thrown in jail

174
00:09:15,453 --> 00:09:18,997
just a short distance from the South Korean embassy.

175
00:09:18,997 --> 00:09:22,023
I went back and forth between the immigration office

176
00:09:22,023 --> 00:09:23,754
and the police station,

177
00:09:23,754 --> 00:09:26,782
desperately trying to get my family out,

178
00:09:26,782 --> 00:09:28,234
but I didn't have enough money

179
00:09:28,234 --> 00:09:30,861
to pay a bribe or fine anymore.

180
00:09:30,861 --> 00:09:32,655
I lost all hope.

181
00:09:32,655 --> 00:09:36,356
At that moment, I heard one man's voice ask me,

182
00:09:36,356 --> 00:09:37,847
"What's wrong?"

183
00:09:37,847 --> 00:09:39,444
I was so surprised

184
00:09:39,444 --> 00:09:43,377
that a total stranger cared enough to ask.

185
00:09:43,377 --> 00:09:45,931
In my broken English, and with a dictionary,

186
00:09:45,931 --> 00:09:49,885
I explained the situation, and without hesitating,

187
00:09:49,885 --> 00:09:51,938
the man went to the ATM

188
00:09:51,938 --> 00:09:54,933
and he paid the rest of the money for my family

189
00:09:54,933 --> 00:09:58,997
and two other North Koreans to get out of jail.

190
00:09:58,997 --> 00:10:02,401
I thanked him with all my heart, and I asked him,

191
00:10:02,401 --> 00:10:04,775
"Why are you helping me?"

192
00:10:04,775 --> 00:10:07,070
"I'm not helping you," he said.

193
00:10:07,070 --> 00:10:10,321
"I'm helping the North Korean people."

194
00:10:10,321 --> 00:10:14,819
I realized that this was a symbolic moment in my life.

195
00:10:14,819 --> 00:10:18,408
The kind stranger symbolized new hope for me

196
00:10:18,408 --> 00:10:21,806
and the North Korean people when we needed it most,

197
00:10:21,806 --> 00:10:25,057
and he showed me the kindness of strangers

198
00:10:25,057 --> 00:10:27,667
and the support of the international community

199
00:10:27,667 --> 00:10:32,888
are truly the rays of hope we North Korean people need.

200
00:10:32,888 --> 00:10:35,374
Eventually, after our long journey,

201
00:10:35,374 --> 00:10:38,771
my family and I were reunited in South Korea,

202
00:10:38,771 --> 00:10:42,225
but getting to freedom is only half the battle.

203
00:10:42,225 --> 00:10:45,848
Many North Koreans are separated from their families,

204
00:10:45,848 --> 00:10:48,661
and when they arrive in a new country,

205
00:10:48,661 --> 00:10:52,305
they start with little or no money.

206
00:10:52,305 --> 00:10:55,331
So we can benefit from the international community

207
00:10:55,331 --> 00:10:58,336
for education, English language training,

208
00:10:58,336 --> 00:11:00,699
job training, and more.

209
00:11:00,699 --> 00:11:02,813
We can also act as a bridge

210
00:11:02,813 --> 00:11:04,938
between the people inside North Korea

211
00:11:04,938 --> 00:11:06,918
and the outside world,

212
00:11:06,918 --> 00:11:09,642
because many of us stay in contact

213
00:11:09,642 --> 00:11:12,411
with family members still inside,

214
00:11:12,411 --> 00:11:14,593
and we send information and money

215
00:11:14,593 --> 00:11:19,161
that is helping to change North Korea from inside.

216
00:11:19,161 --> 00:11:22,198
I've been so lucky, received so much help

217
00:11:22,198 --> 00:11:24,403
and inspiration in my life,

218
00:11:24,403 --> 00:11:27,747
so I want to help give aspiring North Koreans

219
00:11:27,747 --> 00:11:30,523
a chance to prosper

220
00:11:30,523 --> 00:11:33,561
with international support.

221
00:11:33,561 --> 00:11:36,047
I'm confident that you will see more and more

222
00:11:36,047 --> 00:11:38,804
North Koreans succeeding all over the world,

223
00:11:38,804 --> 00:11:41,155
including the TED stage.

224
00:11:41,155 --> 00:11:43,777
Thank you.

225
00:11:43,777 --> 00:11:53,499
(Applause)