On October 28th, THINK (The Human Rights In North Korea) invited North Korean refugee Grace Jo as a guest speaker to the UW to share her experience with students.
Jo escaped North Korea in 2006 and settled in the U.S. in 2008.
Jo shared her story of escaping North Korea, including unimaginable hurdles and suffering. Her parents went to China to buy food illegally because of starvation in 1993, but were caught by North Korean officers and the family ended up losing all their food to the government. Jo’s mother gave a birth to Jo’s youngest brother after the death of Jo’s father at the hands of government torture in prison. The newborn baby also died after 2 months because of malnutrition. Jo’s older sister left the family to find food for family, but she never came back.
After Jo’s grandmother passed away because of malnutrition and lack of medication, Jo’s mother decided to escape North Korea. Her family was sent back to North Korea several times by the Chinese government, where her family had to suffer torture and imprisonment in North Korea.
Her family was rescued by Pastor John Yoon after bribing a North Korean officer $10,000. Her family settled in the U.S. in 2008, and they are currently living in Northern Virginia.
After sharing her stories, Jo took questions from the audience.
One person asked,
“As a human rights activist, what do you think is the most effective way for students to get involved in human rights works?”
Jo answered,
“Nowadays, these days, students and young people, it’s time to take action….now is not the time for simply researching.”
Jo is planning to study international law to help North Korean refugees.