North Korean Defector Fled the Country So She Could Pray without Fear of Death
“I want to live the life I choose” Sookyung Kang stated in a new video with the group, Liberty in North Korea, about her choice to defect from North Korea so she could pray without fear of dying.
“I chose my dreams and freedom,” she went on to say as she retells her shocking experiences. In the video she talks about how she embarked on a 3,000-mile journey to escape North Korea’s repressive regime.
“The North Korean government tries to control people by idolizing and divinizing the leaders,” she stated. They also copied a lot from the Bible, but they instead twisted it to apply only to their leaders and not to the true gospel message. “I believe the gospel gives freedom to everyone, but the North Korean regime takes away freedom and won’t allow people to think freely,” she said.
However, she says this isn’t the only problem in the country. According to her, North Korea also doesn’t provide for the basic needs of its citizens. Food, shelter, and safety are completely disregarded by the government there, leaving citizens to fend for themselves without giving them the freedom to do so.
Additionally, North Korea persecutes Christians harshly. In fact, Kang says Christians are the most persecuted group in the country. “Sometimes they are executed or sent to political prison camps,” she said.
Kang talked about her uncle, who was a Christian missionary in North Korea. “He put his life on the line and lives each day like it was his last,” she said of him. He was once imprisoned by the communist, totalitarian regime for doing missionary work. She said she grew up pretty sheltered, but realized the woes of the country when she had to bring her uncle food in prison. “I started seeing North Korea as it really is.”
And that started the change where she ultimately decided to flee the country. “I wanted to believe in God freely without having to risk my life,” she said.
So, she escaped North Korea in 2011. She was 17 years old. It was Liberty in North Korea’s partners in China who helped her escape. Now she has the freedom to practice her beliefs.
Liberty in North Korea is an NGO that rescues North Korean refugees through helping them escape via secret routes. According to The Christian Post, they have helped 1,201 refugees escape the country’s oppressive grasp.
Photo courtesy: Pixabay
John Paluska has been a contributor for Christian Headlines since 2016 and is the founder of The Daily Fodder, a news outlet he relaunched in 2019 as a response to the constant distribution of fake news.
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