N. Korea refugees talk about new life

TNKR holds 4th English speech contest

By John Redmond

Seven North Korean refugees spoke candidly and emotionally about their lives in North Korea, their escapes via China and their struggles in the South, at the fourth English speech contest organized by Teach North Korean Refugees (TNKR) on Saturday.

The speakers were allowed 10 minutes to address the question, “I escaped from North Korea. Now what?” at the contest held at the Shin & Kim law firm in downtown Seoul.

Most of them discussed their adjustment to living outside of North Korea. They also talked of such issues as alienation and discrimination against North Korean defectors in the South.

Kim Eun-ho, winner of the contest, spoke on the concept of freedom, even in the sense of peer group pressure.

“I want the freedom to pursue what I want without the confines of social expectation and peer pressure,” the contestant said. “I want to break these fixed ideas.”

Other common threads running through the speeches were about freedom, risk-taking, safety and hunger, often all together.

“When I moved to South Korea, I wanted to adapt to the way of life, so I wanted to master the language and the culture and way of life that came with it,” said one contestant using the alias Jade, who arrived in Seoul in 2010.

“But even with my best efforts, I was never considered as a true South Korean. For example, when I went to meetings, I was always introduced as a defector.”

Others spoke of fears for their safety, the search for freedom and the realities of the modern world.

“When I first arrived in China, it seemed new to me,” said Hoon.

“There were big buildings, new cars and many kinds of fruits… the banana was especially new to me, and it was delicious,” he joked.

“One day my father said to me, ‘Do you want to go to China? We can eat rice and beef soup.’” said Brian.

“He also told me, if we are captured by the army or the police, we can expect to be gravely punished.”

One spoke of life in the North Korean military. “That was my 20s,” joked speaker Young Nam.

Many contestants would not allow their pictures to be taken for fear of their own lives and the safety of family members still in North Korea.

TNKR is a Seoul-based NGO that provides free English language lessons for North Korean refugees. It has connected more than 200 North Korean refugees with over 400 volunteers.

“We’ve had 248 refugees and 21 South Koreans study with 428 volunteer tutors and mentors,” said TNKR co-founder Casey Lartigue, Jr.

“We are lucky to have so many volunteers from around the world willing to give up so much of their time to help refugees improve their English, get prepared for academic and employment opportunities and tell their stories.”

The group was established in 2013 under the leadership of Lartigue and Vice Director Lee Eun-koo.

TNKR and Shin & Kim hosted the contest. The Korea Times and Korea Development Bank sponsored the event.

Visit facebook.com/TeachNorthKoreanRefugees for more information on TNKR.