Interviews with Han Nam-su

North Korean society does not respect human dignity. This is the reason why so many people are trying to escape.

It is a country that has horrific prison camps, and terrorizes its people by carrying out things like public executions.

Looking at these examples, it is not difficult to see that respect for human dignity cannot be found in North Korea. Human dignity is important because each human being is born with the right to have their dignity respected.

When you are born in a country like North Korea, you forfeit these rights and endure suffering.

Han Nam-su was destined for a life among North Korea’s elite. The son of a military officer, Han and his family were afforded privileges that ordinary North Koreans didn’t have.

Things changed after Han’s father commented on the country’s need for economic reform; he was instantly branded a traitor, tried in a military court, and executed. Han was subsequently expelled from his university and exiled to a remote corner of the country with his family.

On Christmas Eve, 1998, Han decided to leave North Korea and pursue a better life elsewhere. He crossed the frozen Tumen River into China and remained there for the next six years working various odd jobs. In 2004, Han escaped to South Korea where he started a new life in a free society.

Attending Sogang University, Han majored in Diplomacy and Political Science. While there, he decided to raise awareness of the human rights abuses happening in North Korea and founded the Young Defectors’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights. As the organization’s leader, Han works to empower North Korean defectors through trainings, seminars, forums, and various campaigns on democratic governance.