Two more defectors have returned to North Korea and appeared in public events to attack the South, Chosun Central News Agency revealed yesterday.
Park Jin Geun (49) and Jang Gwang Chol (33) took part in a press conference in Pyongyang, during which they were introduced as returnees who “were dragged to South Chosun by the scheming of the puppet state.” It was reported that they were now “in the loving care of the Republic” following their return in July.
Park originally arrived in South Korea in October 2011, and Jang in March 2012.
During the conference, Park claimed, “I was blinded with the thought of money when I crossed over to China. While roaming around I was ensnared in the clutches of an agent of the puppet government and dragged to South Chosun. People like us have no money and cannot obtain work, so there is no possible way to make ends meet.”
Seizing on a notable propaganda theme in past press conferences, Park continued, “No matter where defectors go (in the South), they face unbearable scorn and humiliation. Some of those defectors who have fallen into despair then tumble down into suicide. Should they die a miserable death, nobody even so much as bats an eye. Even the conservative media turns away from this issue.”
Reference was also made to the “Laos 9”, a group of teenage North Koreans forcibly repatriated via China after being apprehended in Laos in late spring. Park declared, “Instead of blaming you for taking the path of treason, the Mother Country will engage you in a warm embrace and take care of you. Your past of crime has been erased.”
Fellow returnee Jang also noted, “Every day of the year I spent in South Chosun was a nightmare. It is a society of darkness, not only to the people like me who were dragged there but to the South Chosun people themselves.”
“Currently in parts of the northern border of the Republic, scores of brokers operate in the human trafficking trade,” he added. “They are watching our people. Lately our people have woken up to this. If they don’t fall easily into the trap, they are treated as prey; they are even bitten and ravaged.”
Furthermore, “The human traffickers make you sign a contract that says you have to pay them a fee. This causes their abductees to feel huge pressure over debt.”
