Durihana North Korea Mission (북한선교 두리하나; Bukhan-seongyo Durihana) is a defector aid Christian organization based in South Korea, founded by Pastor Chun Ki-won.[1] The organization assists North Korean defectors escape from North Korea and China, often by helping refugees to pay their "brokers" fee, which allows them to cross borders.[2] The group also provides migrants with temporary hideouts and helps them move to more secure areas.[3] Durihana has been recognized as one of the main South Korean NGOs involved in aiding North Korean defectors in China.[3]
History edit
Chinese police arrested founder Pastor Chun Ki-won in 2002 on the Mongolian border, on the escape route he pioneered. His arrest and eight month imprisonment caused a stir in South Korea, exposing the plight of North Korean defectors.[citation needed]
In 1995, as a missionary in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture, Chun met his first North Koreans in hiding. "These people had lost all their rights," he said. "The most important thing I could do was revive their humanity." Chun orchestrated the escapes of more than 1,200 North Koreans with only a handful of failures.[1][4]
Nonetheless, the group has been criticized by some for complicating the relations between North and South Korea.[3]
In September 2023, Chun was arrested in Seoul on suspicion of sexually molesting six North Korean teenagers, including defectors staying in the dormitories of the alternative school he established at Durihana's headquarters. In February 2024, Chun was convicted and sentenced by the Seoul Central District Court to five years' imprisonment over the charges.[5]
References edit
- ^ a b "Escaping North Korea", National Geographic Magazine, p. 4, archived from the original on January 20, 2009 focusing on Chun Ki-won.
- ^ Yeo, Andrew I. (2014). "Alleviating Misery: The Politics of North Korean Human Rights in U.S. Foreign Policy". North Korean Review. 10 (2): 71–87. doi:10.3172/NKR.10.2.71. ISSN 1551-2789. JSTOR 43908942.
- ^ a b c Lee, Woo-young; Kim, Yuri (2011). "North Korean Migrants: A Human Security Perspective". Asian Perspective. 35 (1): 59–87. ISSN 0258-9184. JSTOR 42705323.
- ^ "Christian underground smuggles North Koreans to safety in South", SF gate, May 15, 2003.
- ^ "Chun Ki-won: Hero pastor jailed for sexually abusing North Korea teenage escapees". BBC. 16 February 2024..
External links edit
- History of Durihana Archived 2009-03-19 at the Wayback Machine
- "A missionary's perspective", Crossing heaven’s border (interview with Durihana founder Pastor Chun Ki Won), US: PBS.
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