Students hold campaign for human rights in NK

Kim Hyun-dong, president of the Global Leaders Association

By Kwon Ji-youn

Korean-American university students took the initiative to promote awareness about human rights violations in North Korea.

The Global Leaders Association (GLA), a coalition of Korean college students associations in the U.S., said it launched a new campaign, titled “Project HEAR,” on Tuesday.

“Project HEAR,” which stands for Hope for Equality and Rights, calls for the international community to listen and be attentive to the victims of the North Korean regime.

“We believe that human rights abuse is not only the problem of the individuals who are suffering, but also the problem of the international communities, which must recognize and work together in order to solve (the problems),” Kim Hyun-dong, GLA’s president, told The Korea Times.

Kim, who was always proactive at school, serving as president of his high school’s student council and as president of the Korean Students Association at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), said he joined the GLA to broaden his perspective.

The GLA, under Kim’s lead, has participated in many meaningful projects, one of which focused on Korean students who aren’t well-educated in Korean history.

“Project HEAR,” Kim’s most recent assignment, began at UCLA on May 28 and wrapped on May 30. The group set up picture displays, and constructed a wall on which students could write messages of hope to those who are suffering in North Korea.

Pamphlets, T-shirts and wristbands were handed out to students, and photographs were distributed to newspapers and other media.

According to Kim, HEAR will continue to spread its message at other universities, as well as hold a charity exhibition of Korean students’ art in Korea during August.

“We must stand forward for the issue, especially at a time when North Korea is threatening world peace and ignoring the actual conditions of its own people,” Kim added.

“Every individual’s interest can greatly contribute to solving the issue of human rights violation in North Korea,” he said.