My escape from North Korea
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0:00 - 0:02When I was little,
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0:02 - 0:05I thought my country was the best on the planet,
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0:05 - 0:08and I grew up singing a song called "Nothing To Envy."
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0:08 - 0:11And I was very proud.
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0:11 - 0:13In school, we spent a lot of time
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0:13 - 0:15studying the history of Kim Il-Sung,
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0:15 - 0:19but we never learned much about the outside world,
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0:19 - 0:24except that America, South Korea, Japan are the enemies.
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0:24 - 0:27Although I often wondered about the outside world,
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0:27 - 0:31I thought I would spend my entire life in North Korea,
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0:31 - 0:35until everything suddenly changed.
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0:35 - 0:39When I was seven years old, I saw my first public execution,
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0:39 - 0:43but I thought my life in North Korea was normal.
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0:43 - 0:45My family was not poor,
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0:45 - 0:48and myself, I had never experienced hunger.
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0:48 - 0:53But one day, in 1995, my mom brought home a letter
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0:53 - 0:55from a coworker's sister.
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0:55 - 1:00It read, "When you read this, all five family members
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1:00 - 1:03will not exist in this world,
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1:03 - 1:07because we haven't eaten for the past two weeks.
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1:07 - 1:09We are lying on the floor together,
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1:09 - 1:18and our bodies are so weak we are ready to die."
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1:18 - 1:21I was so shocked.
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1:21 - 1:23This was the first time I heard
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1:23 - 1:28that people in my country were suffering.
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1:28 - 1:31Soon after, when I was walking past a train station,
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1:31 - 1:32I saw something terrible
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1:32 - 1:36that I can't erase from my memory.
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1:36 - 1:39A lifeless woman was lying on the ground,
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1:39 - 1:43while an emaciated child in her arms
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1:43 - 1:47just stared helplessly at his mother's face.
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1:47 - 1:51But nobody helped them, because they were so focused
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1:51 - 1:56on taking care of themselves and their families.
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1:56 - 2:00A huge famine hit North Korea in the mid-1990s.
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2:00 - 2:03Ultimately, more than a million North Koreans
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2:03 - 2:06died during the famine, and many only survived
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2:06 - 2:12by eating grass, bugs and tree bark.
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2:12 - 2:15Power outages also became more and more frequent,
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2:15 - 2:19so everything around me was completely dark at night
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2:19 - 2:22except for the sea of lights in China,
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2:22 - 2:24just across the river from my home.
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2:24 - 2:30I always wondered why they had lights but we didn't.
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2:30 - 2:34This is a satellite picture showing North Korea at night
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2:34 - 2:37compared to neighbors.
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2:37 - 2:39This is the Amrok River,
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2:39 - 2:42which serves as a part of the border
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2:42 - 2:44between North Korea and China.
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2:44 - 2:47As you can see, the river can be very narrow
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2:47 - 2:53at certain points, allowing North Koreans to secretly cross.
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2:53 - 2:55But many die.
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2:55 - 3:02Sometimes, I saw dead bodies floating down the river.
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3:02 - 3:07I can't reveal many details [about] how I left North Korea,
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3:07 - 3:11but I only can say that during the ugly years of the famine
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3:11 - 3:16I was sent to China to live with distant relatives.
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3:16 - 3:18But I only thought
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3:18 - 3:22that I would be separated from my family for a short time.
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3:22 - 3:24I could have never imagined
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3:24 - 3:29that it would take 14 years to live together.
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3:29 - 3:33In China, it was hard living as a young girl without my family.
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3:33 - 3:36I had no idea what life was going to be like
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3:36 - 3:38as a North Korean refugee,
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3:38 - 3:42but I soon learned it's not only extremely difficult,
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3:42 - 3:44it's also very dangerous,
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3:44 - 3:49since North Korean refugees are considered in China
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3:49 - 3:52as illegal migrants.
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3:52 - 3:54So I was living in constant fear
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3:54 - 3:57that my identity could be revealed,
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3:57 - 4:00and I would be repatriated to a horrible fate
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4:00 - 4:03back in North Korea.
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4:03 - 4:06One day, my worst nightmare came true,
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4:06 - 4:08when I was caught by the Chinese police
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4:08 - 4:12and brought to the police station for interrogation.
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4:12 - 4:16Someone had accused me of being North Korean,
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4:16 - 4:20so they tested my Chinese language abilities
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4:20 - 4:23and asked me tons of questions.
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4:23 - 4:25I was so scared,
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4:25 - 4:28I thought my heart was going to explode.
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4:28 - 4:32If anything seemed unnatural, I could be imprisoned
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4:32 - 4:34and repatriated.
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4:34 - 4:36I thought my life was over,
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4:36 - 4:40but I managed to control all the emotions inside me
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4:40 - 4:41and answer the questions.
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4:41 - 4:44After they finished questioning me,
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4:44 - 4:46one official said to another,
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4:46 - 4:48"This was a false report.
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4:48 - 4:50She's not North Korean."
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4:50 - 4:54And they let me go. It was a miracle.
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4:54 - 4:57Some North Koreans in China seek asylum
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4:57 - 4:59in foreign embassies,
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4:59 - 5:03but many can be caught by the Chinese police
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5:03 - 5:04and repatriated.
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5:04 - 5:06These girls were so lucky.
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5:06 - 5:08Even though they were caught,
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5:08 - 5:09they were eventually released
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5:09 - 5:12after heavy international pressure.
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5:12 - 5:16These North Koreans were not so lucky.
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5:16 - 5:20Every year, countless North Koreans are caught in China
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5:20 - 5:22and repatriated to North Korea,
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5:22 - 5:26where they can be tortured, imprisoned
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5:26 - 5:29or publicly executed.
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5:29 - 5:32Even though I was really fortunate to get out,
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5:32 - 5:35many other North Koreans have not been so lucky.
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5:35 - 5:39It's tragic that North Koreans have to hide their identities
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5:39 - 5:43and struggle so hard just to survive.
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5:43 - 5:46Even after learning a new language and getting a job,
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5:46 - 5:50their whole world can be turned upside down in an instant.
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5:50 - 5:54That's why, after 10 years of hiding my identity,
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5:54 - 5:58I decided to risk going to South Korea,
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5:58 - 6:01and I started a new life yet again.
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6:01 - 6:04Settling down in South Korea was a lot more challenging
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6:04 - 6:06than I had expected.
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6:06 - 6:10English was so important in South Korea,
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6:10 - 6:13so I had to start learning my third language.
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6:13 - 6:16Also, I realized there was a wide gap
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6:16 - 6:18between North and South.
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6:18 - 6:20We are all Korean, but inside,
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6:20 - 6:22we have become very different
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6:22 - 6:26due to 67 years of division.
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6:26 - 6:30I even went through an identity crisis.
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6:30 - 6:33Am I South Korean or North Korean?
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6:33 - 6:36Where am I from? Who am I?
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6:36 - 6:38Suddenly, there was no country
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6:38 - 6:43I could proudly call my own.
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6:43 - 6:47Even though adjusting to life in South Korea was not easy,
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6:47 - 6:48I made a plan.
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6:48 - 6:52I started studying for the university entrance exam.
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6:52 - 6:56Just as I was starting to get used to my new life,
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6:56 - 6:58I received a shocking phone call.
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6:58 - 7:00The North Korean authorities
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7:00 - 7:03intercepted some money that I sent to my family,
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7:03 - 7:05and, as a punishment, my family was going
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7:05 - 7:08to be forcibly removed
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7:08 - 7:11to a desolate location in the countryside.
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7:11 - 7:14They had to get out quickly,
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7:14 - 7:17so I started planning how to help them escape.
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7:17 - 7:21North Koreans have to travel incredible distances
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7:21 - 7:24on the path to freedom.
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7:24 - 7:26It's almost impossible to cross the border
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7:26 - 7:29between North Korea and South Korea,
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7:29 - 7:33so, ironically, I took a flight back to China
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7:33 - 7:36and I headed toward the North Korean border.
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7:36 - 7:39Since my family couldn't speak Chinese,
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7:39 - 7:41I had to guide them,
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7:41 - 7:45somehow, through more than 2,000 miles in China
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7:45 - 7:48and then into Southeast Asia.
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7:48 - 7:51The journey by bus took one week,
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7:51 - 7:54and we were almost caught several times.
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7:54 - 7:57One time, our bus was stopped
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7:57 - 8:01and boarded by a Chinese police officer.
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8:01 - 8:03He took everyone's I.D. cards,
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8:03 - 8:06and he started asking them questions.
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8:06 - 8:09Since my family couldn't understand Chinese,
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8:09 - 8:14I thought my family was going to be arrested.
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8:14 - 8:17As the Chinese officer approached my family,
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8:17 - 8:19I impulsively stood up, and I told him
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8:19 - 8:22that these are deaf and dumb people
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8:22 - 8:24that I was chaperoning.
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8:24 - 8:26He looked at me suspiciously,
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8:26 - 8:30but luckily he believed me.
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8:30 - 8:33We made it all the way to the border of Laos,
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8:33 - 8:38but I had to spend almost all my money
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8:38 - 8:40to bribe the border guards in Laos.
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8:40 - 8:43But even after we got past the border,
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8:43 - 8:46my family was arrested and jailed
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8:46 - 8:49for illegal border crossing.
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8:49 - 8:51After I paid the fine and bribe,
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8:51 - 8:55my family was released in one month,
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8:55 - 8:58but soon after, my family was arrested and jailed again
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8:58 - 9:01in the capital of Laos.
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9:01 - 9:05This was one of the lowest points in my life.
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9:05 - 9:11I did everything to get my family to freedom,
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9:11 - 9:13and we came so close,
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9:13 - 9:15but my family was thrown in jail
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9:15 - 9:19just a short distance from the South Korean embassy.
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9:19 - 9:22I went back and forth between the immigration office
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9:22 - 9:24and the police station,
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9:24 - 9:27desperately trying to get my family out,
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9:27 - 9:28but I didn't have enough money
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9:28 - 9:31to pay a bribe or fine anymore.
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9:31 - 9:33I lost all hope.
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9:33 - 9:36At that moment, I heard one man's voice ask me,
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9:36 - 9:38"What's wrong?"
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9:38 - 9:39I was so surprised
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9:39 - 9:43that a total stranger cared enough to ask.
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9:43 - 9:46In my broken English, and with a dictionary,
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9:46 - 9:50I explained the situation, and without hesitating,
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9:50 - 9:52the man went to the ATM
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9:52 - 9:55and he paid the rest of the money for my family
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9:55 - 9:59and two other North Koreans to get out of jail.
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9:59 - 10:02I thanked him with all my heart, and I asked him,
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10:02 - 10:05"Why are you helping me?"
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10:05 - 10:07"I'm not helping you," he said.
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10:07 - 10:10"I'm helping the North Korean people."
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10:10 - 10:15I realized that this was a symbolic moment in my life.
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10:15 - 10:18The kind stranger symbolized new hope for me
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10:18 - 10:22and the North Korean people when we needed it most,
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10:22 - 10:25and he showed me the kindness of strangers
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10:25 - 10:28and the support of the international community
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10:28 - 10:33are truly the rays of hope we North Korean people need.
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10:33 - 10:35Eventually, after our long journey,
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10:35 - 10:39my family and I were reunited in South Korea,
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10:39 - 10:42but getting to freedom is only half the battle.
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10:42 - 10:46Many North Koreans are separated from their families,
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10:46 - 10:49and when they arrive in a new country,
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10:49 - 10:52they start with little or no money.
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10:52 - 10:55So we can benefit from the international community
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10:55 - 10:58for education, English language training,
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10:58 - 11:01job training, and more.
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11:01 - 11:03We can also act as a bridge
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11:03 - 11:05between the people inside North Korea
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11:05 - 11:07and the outside world,
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11:07 - 11:10because many of us stay in contact
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11:10 - 11:12with family members still inside,
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11:12 - 11:15and we send information and money
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11:15 - 11:19that is helping to change North Korea from inside.
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11:19 - 11:22I've been so lucky, received so much help
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11:22 - 11:24and inspiration in my life,
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11:24 - 11:28so I want to help give aspiring North Koreans
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11:28 - 11:31a chance to prosper
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11:31 - 11:34with international support.
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11:34 - 11:36I'm confident that you will see more and more
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11:36 - 11:39North Koreans succeeding all over the world,
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11:39 - 11:41including the TED stage.
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11:41 - 11:44Thank you.
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11:44 - 11:53(Applause)
- Title:
- My escape from North Korea
- Speaker:
- Hyeonseo Lee
- Description:
-
As a child growing up in North Korea, Hyeonseo Lee thought her country was “the best on the planet.” It wasn't until the famine of the 90s that she began to wonder. She escaped the country at 14, to begin a life in hiding, as a refugee in China. Hers is a harrowing, personal tale of survival and hope -- and a powerful reminder of those who face constant danger, even when the border is far behind.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDTalks
- Duration:
- 12:15
Camille Martínez edited English subtitles for My escape from North Korea | ||
Krystian Aparta commented on English subtitles for My escape from North Korea | ||
Krystian Aparta edited English subtitles for My escape from North Korea | ||
Morton Bast edited English subtitles for My escape from North Korea | ||
Morton Bast edited English subtitles for My escape from North Korea | ||
Thu-Huong Ha approved English subtitles for My escape from North Korea | ||
Thu-Huong Ha edited English subtitles for My escape from North Korea | ||
Thu-Huong Ha edited English subtitles for My escape from North Korea |
Krystian Aparta
The English transcript was updated on 5/1/2015.