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Past Events
PAST NORTH KOREA FREEDOM WEEK EVENTS AND PROTEST RALLIES
NORTH KOREA FREEDOM WEEK 2009 April 26-May 2, Washington, D.C.
Flyers for Download (PDF) Silence is Death (color 1) Silence is Death (color 2) Silence is Death (b&w) Raise Our Voices (Korean) Raise Our Voices (color) Raise Our Voices (for b&w print)
From Suzanne Scholte (April 4, 2009) Dear Friends:
Those of us involved in the North Korea human rights movement can definitely sympathize with the comments that President Obama has made about not having the luxury of dealing with one crisis at a time but being confronted with many crises at once. As the world watches North Korea prepare for their missile launch, let's remember that when it comes to North Korea, the most important issue is the human rights conditions and the terrible multiple tragedies facing the North Korean people.
Please remember that today, over 200,000 men, women and children continue to suffer in North Korea's gulag where over 400,000 have already been killed; people are continuing to starve adding to the 3 million lives already lost from famine; North Korean females are being victimized by traffickers in China; refugees forced back to North Korea by China's cruel repatriation policy will be beaten and tortured and even executed; three hundred aging South Korean POWs who gave their youth to make South Korea free will wonder if they will continue to be abandoned and forgotten; hundreds of abductees from South Korea, Japan and nine other nations will wonder if they will ever see their families again; and two young, brave American women, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, languish in a prison in Pyongyang wondering if they will meet the same fate as abducted American resident Kim Dong Shik who was tortured and starved to death in Pyongyang for helping the North Korean people.
This is a most critical time for the North Korea human rights movement: we either advance these issues now with the opportunity that comes from a new administration and a new Congress or we see another decade of death and despair for those whose great misfortune was to be born under the Kim Jong Il dictatorship to become the world's most persecuted and isolated people as well as for those who have been abducted by this regime.
This North Korea Freedom Week we do not have the luxury of addressing one of these ongoing tragedies, so we intend to address all of them. We have more events, and more organizations and defectors participating this year than in any previous North Korea Freedom Week.
We have confirmed the participation of thirty defectors from North Korea who will join us for our April 28 North Korea Freedom Day rally as we stand together to promote the freedom, human rights and dignity of the North Korean people.
We need your help on the following items: NKFW 09 Flyers and Posters -- Please print out the attached flyers to help us spread the word about the two main public events that week -- the Capitol Hill Rally at noon April 28 and the demonstration at the Chinese embassy at noon on May 2. Silence is Death won the poster contest, and we have large posters available to be placed in public sites. Please email Henry Song at henry@defenseforum.org if you would like a poster to hang up in a public place. Register to Visit your Senators and Congressmen in support of North Korea Human Rights: Please take the time after the April 28 rally to visit your own lawmakers, please register here: nkfreedom.org/index.php Shepherds Needed for Capitol Hill Visits: Those of you who know your way around Capitol Hill and would like to be a "shepherd" for these visits to accompany folks wishing to visit their lawmakers, please let Lindsay Vessey know if you can help: LindsayV@odusa.org Housing for NKFW Participants: If you live in the DC area and can open your home to folks coming for NKFW OR if you are coming for NKFW and need housing, please let Jane Yang know at: jane.e.yang@gmail.com Financial Help: If you cannot physically be present for North Korea Freedom Week, please consider being a sponsor of the week's events by sending a tax-deductible contribution to: North Korea Freedom Coalition, c/o Jubilee Campaign, 9689 Main Street, Suite C, Fairfax, Virginia 22031. Or donate online via credit card here: Network for Good. Please make your check payable to "Jubilee Campaign" and be sure to designate your donation to "NKFC" in the note section. Jubilee Campaign is the official Treasurer for NKFC. (www.jubileecampaign.org)
Below is the latest schedule for North Korea Freedom Week 2009. Acta Non Verba, Suzanne Scholte
SCHEDULE FOR NORTH KOREA FREEDOM WEEK 2009 (updated as of April 4--more details and RSVP event information will be forthcoming)
Sunday, April 26 6:00 pm Candlelight Vigil to remember and pray for all repatriated North Koreans who have been beaten to death and publicly executed in North Korea because of China's repatriation policy Location: International Calvary Church, 5700 Hanover Avenue, Springfield, Virginia
7:00 pm Prayer Service for North Korea and for the visiting North Korea defector delegation Location: International Calvary Church, 5700 Hanover Avenue, Springfield, Virginia
Monday, April 27 All Day: North Korea Genocide Exhibit will be on display at Columbus Circle across from Union Station
AFT: Special Capitol Hill Screening of Crossing especially for Congressional staff, but open to public
2:00-4:00 pm Department of State: DRL North Korea Funding Information Session As the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor continues to dedicate more resources to the promotion of human rights and democracy in North Korea, DRL will host this special informational session to offer an information session to introduce potential partner organizations to the DRL solicitation process including how grant proposals are evaluated and monitored. Host: Department of State DRL Bureau To Participate, email turnerje@state.gov by April 10 with full name, date of birth, country of citizenship and passport or driver's license number.
Tuesday, April 28 Rally Date and Anniversary of the First North Korea Freedom Day All Day: North Korea Genocide Exhibit will be on display West Front of US Capitol
10:00 am Demonstration by the Democracy Network Against the North Korean Gulag at the Raoul Wallenberg Place across from the Holocaust Museum
Capitol Hill Rally for North Korea Freedom and Human Rights, West Front of the U.S. Capitol 11:00 am Music Starts with the Pyongyang Musical Mission Troupe and our own Jeff Park and the Seoul Presbyterian Church Praise Band 12:00 noon Program with Confirmed speakers (so far): South Korean Human Rights Ambassador Jhe Seong Ho, Senator Sam Brownback, Congressman Ed Royce, NED President Carl Gershman, Freedom House Executive Director Jennifer Windsor, Amnesty International Asia Advocacy Director T. Kumar, Dr. Hyunuk Kim, President of the International Forum for Foreign Policy and National Security, Kim Seung Min Director of Free North Korea Radio, representatives from the Japanese Rescue Movement and all North Korean defector organizations...
Afternoon: Rally participants will visit their Senators and Congressmen. If you would like to participate, please RSVP here: nkfreedom.org/index.php
3:00-5:00 pm Panel Session on North Korea human rights sponsored by the Korea Economic Institute Host: Ambassador Jack Pritchard and the Korea Economic Institute Location: 1800 K Street, N.W., Suite 1010, Washington DC, 20006
Wednesday, April 29 10:00 am Panel Session Focusing on Survey of North Korean Refugees Host: Marcus Noland and the Peterson Institute Location: C. Fred Bergsten Conference Center, 1750 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20036
6:00 pm Special Screening of KIMJONGILIA which premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival with the film's director and producer N.C. Heikin. KIMJONGILIA is the first film documentary to expose the horrible human rights abuses by Kim Jong-il through defector's stories, North Korea's propaganda and original performance. Host and sponsor: Congressman Trent Franks and Tina Ramirez Location: Capitol Visitors Center - North Theatre RSVP Required (limited seating): RSVP at http://www.nkfreedom.org/index.php?id=30
Thursday, April 30 10:00 AM Congressional briefing on Humanitarian Situation and What Can Be Done to Help the North Korean People Host: Congressional Human Rights Commission Location: To Be Determined
1:00-4:00 PM (exact time to be finalized soon) Panel Session hosted by the Heritage Foundation on North Korean Human Rights: Recommendations for President Obama and the U.S. Congress Confirmed speakers: NED President Carl Gershman, Joel Charney of Refugees International, Jared Genser of Freedom Now Host: Bruce Klingner and the Heritage Foundation Location: Heritage Foundation, 214 Massachusetts Avenue, NE, Washington, DC 20002
6:30-8:30 pm PSCORE (People for Successful Corean Reunification) Special Event Confirmed speakers include: Ana Jang, former New York Times reporter Laura E. Pohl, PSCORE founder Kim Young-il, and Han Young Jin Host: Ana Jang and the Georgetown Public Policy Institute, GPPI IPD Track, GU Korean Student Society, PS CORE Location: Student Lounge at Georgetown Public Policy Institute
Friday, May 1 12:00 noon Capitol Hill Forum in honor of North Korean Defectors hosted by the Defense Forum Foundation Rayburn House Office Building, Capitol Hill Host: Defense Forum Foundation Location: B-339 Rayburn RSVP required (limited seating): henry@defenseforum.org
Saturday, May 2 12:00 noon Protest at the new Chinese embassy against the PRC's violent treatment of North Korean refugees 3505 International Place, NW, Washington, DC -- note this is a new embassy address!!
2008 December Protest Rally to Help Save North Korean Refugees & Protest against China's Violent Treatment and Unlawful Repatriation of North Korean refugees Friday, December 5 , 2008, Chinese Embassy, Washington, D.C., 12pm-2pm Saturday, December 6, 2008, Union Station, Washington, D.C., 12pm-2pm Flier for color print in English & Korean (PDF). Flier for black & white print in English & Korean (PDF). Maps for December protest rallies (MSWord).
2008 NORTH KOREA FREEDOM WEEK (April 26-May 3) Short Bios of the Delegation of Visiting North Koreans & VIP Guests Press Release 04.25.08 with Schedule of Events in detail. Also available in PDF here. NKFW FLYERS (PDF) (English & Korean) Poster (PDF):"China's Cruelty Kills the Olympic Spirit"
2007 NORTH KOREA FREEDOM WEEK (April 22-29) Schedule of Events and List of Eyewitnesses to the Atrocities in North Korea NKFC Press Release, April 12, 2007 (MS Word) Flyer: International Protest Rally on North Korea Freedom Day, April 28 (English & Korean)(PDF) Flyer (Korean): NK Genocide Exhibit, April 23-26 (PDF) Flyer (English): NK Genocide Exhibit, April 23-26 (PDF)
2006 December International Protest Against the Violent Repatriation of North Korean Refugees Report & Photos of Protests held in 15 different countries
2006 NORTH KOREA FREEDOM WEEK Schedule of Events with links to Statements given at the events, hearings, and April 28 North Korea Freedom Day Rally (April 22-30, 2006).
Photographs from North Korea Freedom Week 2006
North Korea Freedom Day, U.S. Capitol
Wreath laying ceremony at the Korean War Memorial
Suzanne Scholte, President of NKFC, giving opening statement
Participants at the U.S. Capitol
Participant at the U.S. Capitol
2005 North Korea Freedom Week
North Korea Freedom Week by Yohan Gohng April 22 – April 30, 2005
The following is a special report by Yohan Gohng describing the events that occurred during North Korea Freedom Week. Hundreds of people participated in the various events over the course of the week which included the opening of the North Korea Genocide Exhibit, the formation of the Exile Committee for North Korean Democracy, conferences, Capitol Hill forums, prayer vigils, and a Congressional hearing. Thank you for everyone who helped and participated -- Suzanne Scholte, Chairman, North Korea Freedom Week
The North Korea Freedom Coalition organized North Korea Freedom Week (NKFW) in April 2005 in Washington, D.C. to promote public and government support for the human rights and freedom of the North Korean people. Marking the first anniversary of North Korea Freedom Day (April 28, 2004) which effectively galvanized grass roots support for the ratification of the North Korea Human Rights Act last year, NKFW was again a great success: The series of events throughout the week raised public awareness of North Korea’s human rights violations and encouraged governments and people around the world to take further steps on behalf of the North Korean people.
Capitol Hill Forum Honoring South Korean POWs: “Half a Century in the Hellish Nightmare” Friday, April 22, 12:00 noon / Rayburn House Office Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. / Hosted by Dr. Thomas Chung (Korean POW Rescue Committee) and Ambassador J. William Middendorf and Suzanne Scholte of the the Defense Forum Foundation Special Guests: Ambassador James Lilley and Embassy representatives from the countries that fought for the democracy and freedom of the South Korean people
North Korea Freedom Week began on April 22 with two South Korean POWs’ testimonies about their horrifying experiences in North Korean prison camps. Mr. Chang-ho Cho and Mr. Chang-seok Kim who escaped from North Korea in 1995 and 2000 respectively, half a century after their capture during the Korean War, described the North Korean prison camp as a “zoo.” Deprived of the most basic necessities, South Korean POWs died of hunger and diseases while imprisoned in forced labor camps. Mr. Cho testified that by the time he was released after thirteen grisly years, only about fifty out of the initial 500 POWs in his camp were still living. The two soldiers urged the South Korean government to take necessary measures for the prompt return of at least 547 South Korean POWs confirmed to be alive in North Korea. After giving their testimonies, Mr. Cho and Mr. Kim laid a wreath at the Korean War Memorial and received spontaneous applause from the American tourists on site. The forum was hosted by Dr. Thomas Chung of the Korean POW Rescue Committee and Ambassador J. William Middendorf and Suzanne Scholte of the Defense Forum Foundation. Ambassador James Lilley and Embassies representatives from the countries that fought for the democracy and freedom of the South Korean people honored the event as special guests.
North Korea Genocide Exhibit Tuesday, April 26 - Saturday, April 30 / Fairfax Korean Church, Fairfax, VA / Hosted by Pastor Kwang-ho Yang (Fairfax Korean Church), Sin U Nam, Suzanne Scholte (Defense Forum Foundation), and Moon-gook Han (International Coalition to Save the NK Slaves)
North Korea Freedom Week brought international attention to the plight of North Koreans by sponsoring North Korea Genocide Exhibit’s first opening in the U.S. The tragic images and stories of North Korean refugees in China, prisoners in North Korean political prison camps, starving children and women in the streets of North Korea, and other victims of the North Korean regime revealed the appalling conditions of the victims’ lives under Kim Jong-il’s tyranny. The Exhibit was hosted by Rev. Kwang-ho Yang of the Fairfax Korean Church, Sin U Nam, Suzanne Scholte of the Defense Forum Foundation, and rescuer Moon Gook-han of the International Coalition to Save the NK Slaves. Congressman Frank Wolf (R-VA) joined Carl Gershman, President of the National Endowment for Democracy, Gretchen Brikle of the U.S. State Department, and North Korean defector Soon-ok Lee and many others in launching the event. Congressman Wolf reminded the audience that despite the serious and significant threats of the Cold War, communism fell in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. He expressed the hope that the day will soon come when we celebrate newfound freedom for North Koreans.
During the five-day exhibit, numerous personal items belonging to the victims of Kim Jong-il’s regime were on display, testifying to the hardship they endured while trying to escape from the hands of the oppressors. Among the items were 500,000 paper cranes Gil-su’s family folded while hiding in China; each crane had an inscription such as “Give us wings. We want to fly away and find freedom.” In addition to the displays, award-winning documentaries Seoul Train by Incite Productions and the BBC’s Access to Evil as well as other films about North Korea were shown continuously. The Exhibit also arranged book signing events with Soon-ok Lee, author of Eyes of the Tailless Animals describing her frightening experiences in a North Korean political prison camp, and with Colonel Gordon Cucullo, author of Separated at Birth: How North Korea Became the Evil Twin.
The last event at the Exhibit was a forum with South Koreans abductees who had successfully escaped from North Korea and the leaders of the Japanese abductee organizations. Lee Jae-geun, a South Korean who fled North Korea 30 years after his abduction in 1970, testified that the North had kidnapped over 600 South Korean citizens since the end of the Korean War. Shimada Yoich of the National Association for the Rescue of Japanese Kidnapped by North Korea estimated that about 100 Japanese citizens had been kidnapped by North Korea, contrary to Kim Jong-il’s admission of only 13 abductions. Do Hee-yoon of the Civil Coalition for Human Rights of the Kidnapped and Defectors from North Korea sharply criticized the South Korean government for keeping silence on the abduction problem and charged the government of “a serious dereliction of its duty.”
Capitol Hill Screenings of Seoul Train Thursday, April 28, 9:30 am / Rayburn House Office Building, Capital Hill, Washington, D.C. / Hosted by the North Korea Freedom Coalition
Seoul Train, an award-winning documentary depicting the plight of North Korean refugees in China, premiered in Capitol Hill on the first anniversary of North Korea Freedom Day. Produced by Jim Butterworth and Lisa Sleeth, the film portrays the failed efforts of North Korean defectors who sought safe passage from China to South Korea through neighboring countries. In introducing the film at the House-side screening, Congressman Joseph Pitts (R-PA) remarked, “The film is excellent but is absolutely horrifying – and it exposes the absolute cowardice of numerous Chinese officials who would send a two-year-old little girl back to certain torture and death in North Korea. I am here today to stand with the people of North Korea, those who remain in North Korea and those who flee their country in order to find food and freedom. I am also here today to stand with the courageous activists who risk imprisonment and death to help the North Korean people – thank you – we need you and we stand with you. The people of North Korea need the international community and the people of the United States to speak out on their behalf.” Congressman Trent Franks (R-AZ) who introduced the film at the Senate-side screening also expressed his concerns and support for North Korean refugees. Both screenings were followed by a question and answer session with the producers.
Protest at the Chinese Embassy for Violence against North Korean Refugees Thursday, April28, 12:00 noon / People’s Republic of Korea Embassy, Washington, D.C. / Hosted by the International Campaign to Block the Repatriation of the North Korean Refugees
Following the screenings of Seoul Train, over a hundred protestors including North Korean defectors, South Korean abductees and NGO leaders from the U.S., South Korea and Japan participated in a rally in front of the Chinese Embassy. Chanting “Free North Koreans!” and “No Beijing Olympics!” the participants protested against China’s complete failure to abide by its obligations under international treaties to protect the North Korean refugees. Bob Turner of Jubilee Campaign reminded the participants that at the March 2005 session of the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva, Vitit Muntarbhorn, the UN Special Rapporteur for North Korea, unequivocally declared that North Korean defectors in China are refugees and are entitled to protection from the UN High Commission for Refugees. Turner called on the Chinese government “to prove it views international treaties it has signed as more than meaningless scraps of paper and ink” and “to stop repatriating North Korean REFUGEES – for refugees are what they are – and to begin evincing a genuine respect for the human rights of all who seek shelter within its borders.” Senator Brownback, Congressman Chris Cox, Congressman Steve Israel, Congressman Joseph Pitts, Congressman Chris Smith, and Congressman Tom Tancredo served as participating hosts and provided statements for the protest. North Korean prison camp survivors gave their testimonies, and various NGO leaders also delivered their statements. The protestors read the full list of North Korean refugees arrested by Chinese authorities from 2000 to the present and tried to deliver a copy of the list to the Embassy officials. The Embassy, however, kept its gates locked to prevent its delivery.
A volunteer for DFF, Jeff Park, commented after the rally, “…the protest drew in many people with a sincere heart for the North Korean people living in bondage and captivity… We serve an amazing God infinitely greater than Kim Jong-il and I believe with all my heart that one day very soon the truth will set everyone free.”
Congressional Hearing on North Korea Freedom Day Anniversary Thursday, April 28, 1:30 pm / Rayburn House Office Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. / Hosted by House Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific and Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Operations
On the same day, two subcommittees of the House International Relations Committee – the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific and the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Operations – held a joint hearing on the North Korea Human Rights Act of 2004. In the first panel, three State Department officials discussed their progress in implementing the legislation. Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, Arthur E. Dewey, testified that the government had begun consultations with North Korea’s neighboring countries and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on issues concerning North Korean asylum seekers. Gretchen Birkle of the State Department also stated that the appointment of a Special Envoy mandated by the North Korea Human Rights Act was “imminent.”
The second panel was composed of Dong-chul Choi, North Korean defector and Washington Representative for the Exile Committee for North Korean Democracy, Ann Buwalda, refugee law expert and director of Jubilee Campaign, and Marcus Noland, PhD, of the Institute for International Economics. Urging the U.S. government for the prompt implementation of the North Korea Human Rights Act, Choi predicted that its implementation will introduce the unfamiliar concepts of freedom, democracy and human rights to the North Korean People who have been imbued only with Anti-Americanism and the juche ideology from childhood. Buwalda criticized the Chinese government of its violations of treaty obligations to protect North Korean refugees. She emphasized, “The UNHCR must regain unimpeded access to North Korean refugees found in China, in particular in the border areas. …it would be contrary to international refugee law for the UNHCR to deny refugee status to any North Korean citizen who would face arrest, torture, labor camp detention or execution upon their return.” Dr. Noland discussed North Korea’s food situation and testified that the North Korean government has offset international aid by cutting commercial food imports. He also expressed concerns that the diversion of aid from its intended recipients is “almost certainly taking place, and the magnitudes are not small.”
Prayer Vigil for Freedom and Human Rights in North Korea Thursday, April 28, 7:00 pm / Fairfax Korean Church, Fairfax, VA / Hosted by Dong-soo Shin and the Fairfax Korean Church
In the evening of the Freedom Day anniversary, a number of North Korea Freedom Week organizers and participants as well as the members of Korean Christian communities in the Washington area gathered at the Fairfax Korean Church for a time of prayer. Rev. Bong-il Choi delivered a message of hope for the North Korean people. Pastors Yang-il Kim, Young-man Chung, Hee-moon Lee, Yoon-sik Park led prayers for God’s deliverance of the suffering people in North Korea and Pastor Yoon-sik Park gave the benediction. Pastor Dong-soo Shin organized the prayer vigil and Pastor Kwang-ho Yang and the members of the Fairfax Korean Church kindly hosted the participants.
Press Conference for the Exile Committee for North Korean Democracy Friday, April 29, 10:00 am / National Press Club, Washington, D.C. / Hosted by Peter Hickman and the Morning Newsmaker Committee, National Press Club
The leaders of the Exile Committee for North Korean Democracy (ECNKD), an umbrella group for 6,300 dissidents, held a press conference on April 29 at the National Press Club for the opening of its Washington office. Announcing the new launch before a number of international and domestic reporters, Dong-chul Choi, ECNKD’s Washington representative and Vice Chairman, unequivocally stated that the group aimed to expand the anti-Kim Jong-il forces within North Korea and form a united front with them. Choi added that the most important task for the group is “to enlighten North Korean people with genuine spirit of human rights and democracy against the blind loyalty to Kim and idolatry of the dictator.” As a means to achieve this goal, he stated that the group planned to send radios receivers to the people in North Korea and to broadcast programs that would educate them of freedom, democracy and human rights.
Vice Chairmen from the Seoul office Kim Seung-min, Huh Kwang-il and Hong Soon-kyung also participated in the press conference. Kim Seung-min, director of the Free North Korea Radio and a former captain in the North Korean army, affirmed that they were “working to topple Kim’s dictatorship.”
Capitol Hill Forum for the Exile Committee for North Korea Democracy Friday, April 29, 12 noon / Rayburn House Office Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. / Hosted by the Defense Forum Foundation and Doug Anderson of the House International Relations Committee
Following the press conference, the officers of the Exile Committee for North Korean Democracy (ECNKD) described their work at the Capitol Hill forum hosted by DFF and Doug Anderson of the House International Relations Committee. The officers introduced their activities for the promotion of human rights and freedom in North Korea and their plans for a democratic North Korea in the post-Kim Jong-il era. The Chairman of ECNKD Hwang Jang-yop was unable to attend the forum but sent a special video message from Seoul. Identifying Kim Jong-il’s regime as a totalitarian dictatorship by one person, the former secretary of North Korea’s Worker’s Party urged democratic nations, especially the U.S. and South Korea, to take actions and rescue the North Korean people dying in misery.
North Korean Human Rights Conference Saturday, April 30, 7:00 pm / New Covenant Fellowship Church, Germantown, MD / Hosted by the Maryland Korean Association and Jubilee Campaign
On the last day of the Week, the Korean Association of Maryland Metropolitan Area and Jubilee Campaign jointly hosted the North Korean Human Rights Conference at the New Covenant Fellowship Church in Germantown, MD. Following the screening of Seoul Train, Soon-ok Lee shared her horrifying experiences in a North Korean labor camp, and a former North Korean diplomat, Hong-soon Kyung, shared his transformation from party loyalist to defector.
Drawing an analogy between Kim Jong-il’s regime and slavery which President Lincoln condemned saying, “If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong,” human rights activist Sin U Nam declared in his panel speech, “If Kim Jong-il is not evil, nothing is evil!” He further criticized the South Korean government for its Sunshine Policy which he believed had only strengthened the “evil regime.” Dennis P. Halpin, a professional staff member for East Asian Affairs in the House International Relations Committee, also expressed his worries about the South Korean government in his speech entitled, “John Paul II, South Korea and Regime Change in North Korea: Be Not Afraid.” Halpin pointed out, “The true crisis is over human rights on the Korean peninsula is not in North Korea. It is in South Korea.” When the world finally sees the shocking images of North Korean concentration camps following Kim Jong-il’s demise, Halpin warned, “[p]eople around the world will ask how Seoul could have maintained its silence on North Korea’s human rights tragedy year after year in Geneva, as its brethren in the North endured such intolerable suffering…” Halpin, however, concluded in a hopeful note, “As far as the future of the Korean peninsula is concerned, we should take heart from the words of our late Pope, John Paul II: ‘Be not afraid.’”
Photographs from North Korea Freedom Day 2004
Our first North Korea Human Rights Day, U.S. Capitol, April 28, 2004.
North Korean refugees in chains make their voices heard near the Holocaust Museum, April 28, 2004
Students protesting at the U.S. Capitol, April 28, 2004.
North Korean refugees testifying to Congressmen about atrocious
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