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Article by Lisa Chudnofsky
Innocence Lost
Thousands of North Korean female refugees – as young as 15 – are
being forced into sexual slavery in China. Read the shocking
story of Kim Mi-sohn and help put a stop to this human rights
atrocity.
The North Korean economy currently lies in ruins, its people
suffering through stark poverty. A communist dictatorship,
families can only expect to receive about seven days worth of
rice per month.
North Korea is also one of the most tightly sealed off nations
in the world, making it extremely difficult to help those in
need. If its people happen to speak out negatively about the
government, they can expect to be sent to concentration camps
for re-education. Many decide their only hope for survival is
fleeing to China, especially teens and children fit for the
hazardous – and illegal -- crossing of the Tumen River, which
separates the two countries. But life in China doesn’t normally
turn out how they expected.
Sold into Slavery
Kim Mi-sohn* sits rather peacefully as she tells the story of
her introduction into China as a refugee. You can sense a deep
inner strength as she travels back to a time, only several years
ago, when she was sold as a sexual slave to a married man. “He
had a very bad habit of drinking heavily,” she says. “When he
did, he would get violent, and on many occasions hit me on the
face with his fists. I often had bruises or a black eye. My nose
would sometimes bleed from his fits of temper.” There is an
amazing calm in her voice until she reaches her next statement,
“I was at his beck and call, it was that simple.” A catch is now
clearly evident. “If I tried to defend myself, he would get even
more violent with me. So I concluded that my only choice was to
not resist, and just wait until he stopped.”
For Kim, such beatings, as well as rapes, by her “owner” would
last for over a period of seven months. And she was one of the
lucky girls.
Kidnapped by Deceit
Kim has no fond memories of her childhood. What she remembers
most of growing up in Chongjin, North Korea, is a suffocating
lack of personal freedom, extreme poverty and famine, and being
fatherless.
By the time Kim had reached young adulthood, she was on her own.
Her dad died in an automobile accident when she was very young
and her mother passed several years ago at age 47. “I believe
she died so young from overwork and worry about our difficult
life,” she says.
Kim found herself with no means of support; however, around that
time, she was introduced to an older woman from a nearby North
Korean city who appeared to have sympathy for Kim’s situation.
Just the simple notion that someone seemed to care allowed Kim
to open her mind to the woman’s suggestion: “She offered me the
possibility of living with her relatives who had already moved
across the border to China. That sounded so much better than
struggling to survive in North Korea, so I agreed right away.”
Upon arriving in China, Kim was not greeted by the older woman’s
relatives. “Shortly after crossing the river, we were met by an
ethnic Korean-Chinese man, “ she says teary-eyed. “At that
moment I saw the older woman who guided me accept a handful of
Chinese money, 1,500 yuan (equivalent to $190).” Her eyes
growing intense with anger, Kim continues: “I came to the
stunning realization that, far from having a motherly interest
in me, this women had just sold me to a complete stranger in a
strange country!”
“Though I wasn’t technically kidnapped by force, I was surely
kidnapped by deceit.” Kim says. “And when I told the woman I
wanted to go back to North Korea, she slyly said, ‘Go ahead. The
North Korean border guards will catch you, and you know what
that means.” North Koreans who are caught trying to escape the
country face imprisonment, torture and sometimes execution. “At
that moment,” says Kim softly, “the reality of being a refugee
penetrated deep inside of me.” She was trapped.
What’s Going On?
It’s estimated that 70 to 90 percent of North Korean female
refugees, some as young as 15, become victims of sexual
trafficking in China. They are either led to China by “guides”
promising a better life, as in Kim’s case, or are sold into
prostitution that is carried out in bars and karaoke rooms in
rural Northeast China. These girls are stuck in their dismal
situations because they have no legal rights in China. Some are
re-sold three, four or more times.
The major factor for the kidnappings and sale of North Korean
females is said to be gender inequality in the rural areas of
China. Chinese girls seem to be undergoing an exodus to the big
cities – very few want to live out the rest of their lives
married to farmers when China is currently undergoing such an
economic boom. Secondly, though it is not well documented, the
“slave trade” may be in part a result of China’s one-child
policy. In an effort to crack down on overpopulation, the
Chinese government allows families to have only one baby. In
peasant areas like Northeast China, sons are considered more
viable than daughters, so many female births are terminated.
This has also led to an extreme gender imbalance, leaving young
men without wives, or plain coupling.
Escape from China
Kim was never sure how long her owner intended to keep her.
Luckily, it turned out her stay would be cut far shorter than
most of the thousands of other girls living in similar
situations. The parents of her owner actually grew to feel sorry
for Kim, at least that’s what they said. In fact, “They had gone
through a terrible time with their son due to many of his bad
habits, like drinking, and were actually looking for a way to
get rid of him!” Kim says. That process needed to begin with
getting rid of his mistress.
They introduced Kim to a Christian activist in China who
eventually provided her shelter for her first mode of escape. In
2002, one year after making the dangerous trek to China, the
Christian guided her to the border of China and Mongolia, where
she crossed over to freedom. An overwhelming sense of relief
washed over Kim after hearing the South Korean embassy in
Mongolia could arrange for her entry into South Korea, as a
legal citizen. She felt hope, an emotion foreign to her for most
of her life
Looking Forward
Now in her 20s, it’s Kim’s goal to work for a peaceful
unification of South and North Korea. “If that takes place, I
would like to return to my home province and improve the lives
of my neighbors.”
She says she is happier now, but the nightmares will be with her
forever. And still, “If I pass a policeman or soldier on the
street, I feel suddenly tense and very anxious.” Only a short
while ago, if she was caught in China, Kim would have been sent
back to North Korea with dire consequences.
I’m speaking out now because “I want to encourage people,
especially American girls, to look beyond the circle of their
own lives,” she says. “I’ve been so blessed to have been
rescued, but there are thousands of other girls who remain
trapped. I urge everyone to go one step further and try to make
a difference.”
*(Name has been changed for protection)
*(This article appeared in ‘17’ Magazine)
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