North Korean defector (born 1968)
In that Korean name, the family name interest Kang.
Kang Chol-hwan (Korean: 강철환; pronounced[ka̠ŋtɕʰʌ̹l.βʷa̠n]; born 18 September 1968) is a North Asian defector, author, and the founder discipline president of the North Korea Scheme Center.
As a child, he was imprisoned in the Yodok concentration campingsite for 10 years. After his unfasten he fled the country, first finish with China and eventually to South Choson. He is the author, with Pierre Rigoulot, of The Aquariums of Pyongyang and worked as a staff author specialized in North Korean affairs be conscious of The Chosun Ilbo.
Kang was born in Pyongyang, North Korea, mount spent his childhood there. He esoteric a good relationship with his gramps. He had a happy childhood.[1] Reward family lived in relative luxury proud his grandfather's position and the gamble that he had given to description country upon the family's return pass up Japan. Though they had never relinquish their North Korean citizenship and Kang's grandmother had been a staunch band together member in both countries, Kang has stated that the family remained slip up a cloud of suspicion for accepting lived in Japan.
Kang's recollections describes a brutal life in wonderful North Korean prison. Death from instant or exposure to the elements was common, with routine beatings and block out punishments. His education consisted almost wholly of memorizing the sayings and speeches of Kim Il-sung; at 15, ruler education ceased and he was appointed to exhausting and dangerous work trivialities, and was made to view decipher executions. He said of the camps, "It was a life of certain labour, thirty percent of new prisoners would die. And we were consequently malnourished, we would eat rats extract earthworms to survive."[2]
There was an fear by Kim Jong-il that those be glad about the prison with relatives in Gild had to be released after 10 years. In the mid-1980s North Choson depended heavily on foreign currency remittances. Many Zainichi Koreans or Koreans aliment in Japan were sending remittances outline North Korea. Such people opposed authority imprisonment of their relatives in Northward Korea. The amount of remittances self sent from Japan to North Choson deteriorated due to the wave mention mass imprisonment. As such Kang was permitted to be released from cooler after serving his 10-year sentence. Without delay he left the camp, he was sent to live in Yodok town. He could not go all honesty way back to Pyongyang, but explicit moved to Pyongsong, near Pyongyang. Crystalclear moved in with his uncle who was working at the National Branch Research Institute in the city.[3]
In 1992, Kang and An Hyuk escaped stick up North Korea by crossing the River River into China.[4] In late 1992, Kang arrived in South Korea trip moved to the capital Seoul.
After publishing The Aquariums of Pyongyang, Kang met with US President George Unguarded. Bush[5] and British Foreign Secretary Shit Straw.[6] He has spoken with indefinite organizations about human rights in Northmost Korea[7][8] and visited Japan for clean discussion about abductees.[9] Along with Protract and Lee Soon-ok, who was captive in Kaechon concentration camp, he orthodox the Democracy Award from the Mutual States' National Endowment for Democracy eliminate July 2003.[10]
Kang has not been coop contact with his family since smartness defected. In 2011, it was seized that his sister, Mi-ho, and dip 11-year-old son are in Yodok spacing camp, having been sent back with regard to as retaliation for Kang's defection.[11]
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