Hyeonseo Lee - Escaping From North Korea

Hyeonseo Lee grew up in North Korea but escaped to China in 1997. In 2008, after more than 10 years there, she came to Seoul, South Korea, where she struggled to adjust to life in the bustling city. North Korean defectors often have a hard time in South Korea, she noted in the Wall Street Journal: "We defectors have to start from scratch. Prejudice against North Koreans and icy stares were other obstacles that were hard to cope with."

Now a student at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, she has become an advocate for fellow refugees, even helping close relatives leave North Korea after they were targeted. Her dream? As she told the Korea Times, she'd like to work at the UN or an NGO that advocates for the human rights of North Koreans, including their right to be treated as political refugees.

She has written a more detailed account of her defection in a very moving essay that you can read here.

Discussion Questions:

Recent history is full of stories of nations that have been divided; Germany after World War II, Vietnam during the conflict there and now Korea.  Does it seem this has been a wise choice to achieve peace?

North Korea remains the last closed Communist Society after the fall of the Soviet Union and the opening of China with its accompanying economic boom.  What, if anything, can we do to change both the political regime and improve the lives of people in North Korea?

The secrecy of North Korean Society makes even offering aid difficult.  Should offers of food be tied to military and strategic goals or offered without strings?  What would Jesus do? (a terrible cliché, but fitting in this situation)