A Japanese Woman Defector from North Korea "Paradise on Earth"

It is reported that a 69 years old Japanese woman who escaped from N. Korea in 2001 managed to return home through China after 40 years of miserable life she had led in North Korea.

In 1961, she left Japan for North Korea with her Korean husband, believing what North Korea told them that they would be most welcome and would enjoy better life there. However, she faced hardships there because Japanese and Korean returnees are considered as the second class citizens or traitors.

                    

This video shows North Korean residents and Japanese women married to N. Koreans were so happy to return back to N. Korea believing that North Korea is a paradise on Earth as told by North Korean leader Kim Il Sung. Many events were held in Japan to send them off to North Korea. Very happy moments!　

However, South Korea objected the idea that Japan would agree to send them back to North Korea for the humanitarian reasons often cited by the international community, thereby creating tensions between Japan and South Korea and also between two Koreas.

She recently published her memoir vividly depicting what she had to undergo and observed there. She is now so happy to have reunited with her family in Japan. She wishes that she could share the same happiness with other Japanese women there.

The People's Republic of China is jointly carrying out a project with North Korea to arrest those who have escaped North Korea and to send them back to North Korea. North Korea often executes escapees in public.


Note: I should not have used the term "escaped" and "escapees" because it is almost like I am defining North Korea as "Prison" which North Korea might find offending.

Please replace "escaped" and "escapees" by "defected" and "defectors".

I express my deep apologies for the typos I inadvertently made.