66 The Australian Women’s Weekly|OCTOBER 2019
brutalregimesofKimJong-ilandhis
son,KimJong-un.
ThefirstwaveofSouthKoreans
movedtoLondonin the1960s,butit
wasnotuntilNorthKoreawasravaged
byterriblefaminein 1998thatNew
Maldenbegantoseethefirstescapees
fromtheDemocraticPeople’sRepublic
ofKorea(DPRK),stillrecognised
todayasoneofthemostrepressive
andsecretivenationsin theworld.
JihyunPark,51,riskedlifeandlimb
- literally– toescapethehorrorofher
homeland.It is difficult,shesays,to make
peopleunderstanddaytodaylifein
NorthKorea.
“Itis nothinglikewhatWesterners
know.Youaskaboutshopping,free
timeorto pickupchildrenfromschool - NorthKoreais a totallydifferent
world.Thiscountryhasnofreedom
ofspeech,freedomofmovement,
genderequality,freedomofreligionor
information.Forwomenin NorthKorea,
theyhaveoneimportantmission–
pushingthewheelofrevolution.”
Jihyunwasworkingasa school
teacherwhenherfatherurgedher
toleave.Thestoryofhertwoescapes
is gruelling.Thefirsttime,in 1998,
shethoughtshewasescapingto a
well-paidjobin China,onlytobe
soldbytraffickersandmarriedagainst
herwilltoanalcoholicChinese
farmer,laterbearinghima son.
WhenChineseauthoritiesfound
her,shewasforcedtoleaveherlittle
boyandwasrepatriatedtoNorth
Koreaintoa re-educationcamp.
There,sheenduredviciousbeatings
andsuffereda legwoundthatstill
causeshertowalkwitha limp.On
hersecondescape,shegotluckier.
Sheslippedoutwiththehelpofa
broker,foundherson,andeventually
madeherwaytotheUK.
Jihyunhascourageouslyagreedto
speakwithTheAustralianWomen’s
Weeklybutmanyofhercompatriots
willnot.
HamishMacdonaldheadsupthe
LondonofficeoftheKoreaRisk
Group,aninformation,policyand
analysisfirmspecialisingin issues
relatedtoNorthKorea.Heexplains
thatmanyescapeesstilllivein fear.
“In North Korea, the expression of
individualopinionis notallowed,and
defectorsareoftentraumatisedand
fearfulofreprisalsagainstfamilyand
thoseleftbehind.Manyfindit difficult
tospeakoutaboutwhattheyhave
beenthrough,”hesays.“Butthosewho
leavearea criticalsourceof information
totheworldoutside.”
Stateoffear
JihyunandI meetat a NorthKorean
cookeryclasstaughtbyfemale
defectorsandorganisedbyConnect:
NorthKorea,a UK-basedcharity
thathelpspoliticalrefugeesintegrate.
Inviteesareprovidedwithanaddress
at theverylastminute,andthe
womendemonstratingthedishes
requestanonymity,askingustorefrain
fromusingtheirrealnamesor
showingtheirfacesin photographs.
Shyandclearly
unusedtotaking
thespotlight,the
womenwork
quietly,rarely
raisingtheireyes
fromtheirtasks.
Jihyun,bycontrast,
is a dynamo
ofenergyand
enthusiasmand
chit-chatsasshe
expertlychops
vegetables,
occasionally
translating difficult
wordsforherfriendsandgivingthem
gentleencouragement.
Asthewomenfrywafer-thin
omelettes,simmervegetablesin
fragrantbrothandaddtheubiquitous
pickledcabbage,kimchi,theyobserve
thattheystillfindit difficulttobelieve
theyhavesomuchfood– andin such
variety.Jihyunsaysfamilymealsare
stilloneofthegreatestjoysofliving
in hernewcountry.
InNorthKorea,thebattleto
secureenoughfoodfortheirfamilies
dominatedthesewomen’slives.While
thestatestilldistributessomestaples,
suchasrice,rationshavedropped
steadilysincethe1994-98famine,
forcingmosttoekeouta living
growing,foragingormakingproduce,
andsellingandbarteringin impromptu
markets. Staples such as soy sauce, salt