Refugee Yoon Suk Escapes North Korean Oppression

There are three charities our show is supporting through the sale of art on October 11. One of them is LiNK: Liberty In North Korea. LiNK is an organization bringing North Korean refugees to freedom and safety, as well as providing resettlement support to help them fulfill their potential.

Here's the story of Yoon Suk, a refugee who escaped North Korean oppression as told by LiNK. 

Yoon Suk has vivid, happy memories of growing up in North Korea. She had a passion for the arts and performed frequently on stage. But as she grew older, the happy memories began to fade and the hunger in her belly began to grow.

North Korea was in the throes of famine when Yoon Suk got married. She started a business in the jangmadang to support her family, but when she had no luck running it, she escaped to China to find work.

Not even a month after escaping to China, she was caught by Chinese police and repatriated back to North Korea. Yoon Suk was taken to a prison camp where she was verbally abused, beaten, and starved.

She escaped again to China shortly after her release from the prison camp. She was sold off three times by traffickers. With the last husband, she had her beautiful daughter. Yoon Suk wanted to give her daughter a better life, and knew that would not be possible in China.

Thanks to support from people just like you, Yoon Suk and her daughter escaped China together and are now on their way to safety in South Korea.

To read the rest of her story, make sure to check out the LiNK blog.