Quotes by Lee Hyeon-Seo - Page 2

If defectors say they had high-level connections in Pyongyang or came from an esteemed institution in the North, they can gain better employment in the South, where life can be very difficult for North Koreans.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Connections
Difficult
Employment
Came
Esteemed
Gain
Institution
North
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Hyesan people have money, the most after those in Pyongyang, because it's near the border with China. Illegal smuggling businesses and Chinese trading companies operate there, so people can access outside products.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Illegal
Smuggling
Trading
Border
Near
Operate
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I believe I'll see the reunification of North and South Korea in my lifetime and that defectors should play a role in rebuilding the country. In the long run, I want to return to North Korea, because that's where I belong.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Lifetime
North Korea
Rebuilding
Reunification
South Korea
Believe Long I Believe
Belong
Long Run
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There are people who are destined to embrace endless pain and suffering, and there are people who desire to dream. Everybody dreams, of course. But does anybody desperately want to dream more than the people of North Korea?
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Destined
Embrace
Endless
North Korea
Desperately
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Staying in China provided me with the opportunity to adjust to life outside of North Korea and to gain a sense of perspective, most importantly, by learning that so much of what I had been taught about my country was a lie.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
North Korea
Staying
Adjust
Gain
Importantly
Provided
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For years, my Chinese family supported me, but they wanted me to have an arranged marriage, so I ran away and worked as a waitress. It was a tiny salary, but I was so happy; it was the first time I'd accomplished something.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Ran
Salary
Tiny
Waitress
Arranged
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I am one of the lucky North Koreans who made it out of China. North Korean defectors in the country are terrified of trying to leave because they are often caught at the borders as they attempt to cross into Mongolia or Laos.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Borders
Caught
North Korean
Terrified
Attempt
Cross
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Breathing in South Korea, even though the life here is not easy, makes me so happy. I feel that sitting in a coffee shop, having a cup of tea, and looking out of the window at the blue sky - this is happiness. Truly happiness.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Happiness
Happy
Blue
Blue Sky
Breathing
Coffee
Easy
Sitting
Sky
South
South Korea
Tea
Window
Feel
Looking
Here
Cup
Even
Having
Makes
Shop
Though
Truly
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North Korea is not the dictator's country; it's 25 million citizens' country, and they are suffering under the dictator. North Koreans are really nice, kind, pure people. I hate the dictator and the regime, but I love my home country.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Citizens
Dictator
North Korea
Pure
Love Home Hate
Million
North
Regime
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I think it's possible that China is ready for a serious change regarding its North Korean defector policy. Chinese people are starting to realize that so many defectors have been suffering in China, and it doesn't have to be this way.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
North Korean
Chinese People
Regarding
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I just wanted to see China with my own eyes. I wanted to see whether North Korea was the best country in the world or China was the best. I grew up believing that China was much worse than North Kore, because that's what the regime told us.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
North Korea
Best Eyes World
Believing
Regime
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When I was growing up, my mum was doing illegal smuggling with China. Sometimes she would see a fortune teller for advice. One time I went with her: 'In your future, you'll be living in foreign country and eating the foreign country rice,' she said.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Illegal
One Time
Rice
Smuggling
Future Time Your
Foreign Country
Teller
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Living in China, I found out that the bright new world was not for me, not for defectors. My life in North Korea had been OK; suddenly, in China, I had to feed myself and earn money. Worst of all, North Korean defectors are hunted by the government.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Hunted
New World
North Korea
North Korean
Life Money Government
Bright
Feed
Earn
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Most people in the country didn't - and might still not - know about how powerful the United States is. They think North Korean weapons are the best in the world, and they're very proud of them. They believe they can protect the country from anyone.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
North Korean
Weapons
Best World Believe
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When I explain to people what was the situation in North Korea, they think, how can such a country exist? They know North Korea is bad in some vague way, not clearly. But when we explain it, they then wonder how can a whole country be modern-day slaves?
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Modern Day
North Korea
Explain
Slaves
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The TED talk I gave, that gave me another character I didn't know about. I'm not saying the mind of a hero, but a kind of responsibility. Every word I'm speaking, it's not from myself. I'm speaking for and representing the people of communist North Korea.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Communist
North Korea
Representing
Myself Character Hero
Ted
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I hate the Chinese government. If you do not want to embrace North Korean defectors in your country, I understand. But we have a country where we can seek asylum. So please, let us freely pass through. Why are you doing your best to try and catch defectors?
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Chinese
Chinese Government
Embrace
North Korean
Please
Asylum
Catch
Freely
Let Us
Seek
North
Pass
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As a child, every North Korean is very happy. We were very happy because we learned horrible things about the outside world, like in America and Japan. We thought they were suffering; that's why we were very happy... but in reality, we were living under fear.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Horrible
Horrible Things
Japan
North Korean
Outside World
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I'm not sure if my story will become a movie. Some of my western friends sent my story to people they know in the movie industry. But one consistent response was there aren't any main western characters in my story, so it's unlikely to be made into a movie in English.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Consistent
Movie Industry
Response
Unlikely
People Will Know
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I lived near the border with China, and one night, I simply left home and walked across the iced-over river that separated the two countries. I was fortunate that my family had close relationships with some of the border guards, so I was able to cross without incident.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Border
Family Home Night
Cross
Guards
Incident
Near
River
Separated
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On a bus ride through China, my family and I had talked for hours before a police officer boarded to conduct an inspection. My mother and brother couldn't speak Chinese, so they pretended to be deaf and mute, and none of the Chinese passengers said anything, sparing us.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Deaf
Inspection
Mute
Passengers
Police Officer
Officer
Pretended
Ride
Sparing
Talked
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Like every country, North Korea has some very smart people. They could be contributing a lot more to science and other areas, but North Koreans are forced to spend so much time memorising the fake history of our dictators and other propaganda, so are at a huge disadvantage.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Contributing
Fake
North Korea
Propaganda
Smart People
Time History Science
Dictators
Disadvantage
Forced
Science Time History
So Much Time
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Some people criticize North Koreans and ask, 'Are they stupid? How can they believe those ridiculous things?' But I say, It doesn't matter if you're smart: if you were born in North Korea, you would be exactly like us. We don't know what freedom is. We have never enjoyed it.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Criticize
North Korea
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I was growing up in Hyesan, right by the closest North Korea-China border. China was just across the river: you could see across. So I was curious. On the river, on both sides, you have houses, then mountains. I wanted to know what was on the other side of the Chinese mountains.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Both Sides
Closest
Sides
Border
Houses
River
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In China, it was hard living as a young girl without my family. I had no idea what life was going to be like as a North Korean refugee. But I soon learned it's not only extremely difficult, it's also very dangerous, since North Korean refugees are considered in China as illegal migrants.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Illegal
No Idea
North Korean
Refugee
Life Family Difficult
Refugees
Young Girl
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No dictator can last forever. History shows that in the end, people around the dictator bring about change. Of course, a lot of high-ranking officials don't want change because they want to keep power. But there are other good people who want change. I believe they are waiting for the chance.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Dictator
Good People
Officials
Change History Good
In The End
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In North Koreans, the moment we are born, we don't know there's another life existing outside of our country. The regime always told us all the bad things about the outside world, describing America as full of thieves, all human scum, beggars, everyday people dying on the streets and hospitals.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Bad Things
Describing
Dying
Everyday
Hospitals
Outside World
Streets
Thieves
Life Always Moment
Beggars
Life Moment World
Life Moment Always
Everyday People
Existing
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We were all blocked from western media, outside information. We were captured in a virtual prison cell. People would disappear in the middle of the night - not every day, but sometimes. We hear about it, and we never knew what happened inside the prison camps. I learned about them after I escaped.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Blocked
Camps
Captured
Disappear
Prison
Western
Day Night People
Cell
Escaped
Virtual
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North Korean defectors who speak out against the regime always feel nervous. We never know what the North Korean government is planning. It's really difficult for us to show our faces and speak out, but we feel obligated to do something to inform people about the ongoing tragedy inside North Korea.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Faces
Nervous
North Korea
North Korean
Ongoing
Planning
Tragedy
Inform
Obligated
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The moment I escaped to China, I didn't have any money; I only had one address in my hand of some long-distance Chinese relatives. I didn't know China was that big. I thought I can find their home very easily, and I would come back one week later. But then I found out the address was a 10-hour drive away.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
China
Long Distance
Drive
Easily
Escaped
Hand
Relatives
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Here in South Korea, I'm continuing to learn English in order to boost my prospects. When North Korean defectors try to get a job to stabilize their lives, their lack of English is a handicap. It was the same story while I was living in China. It took an enormous amount of time and enthusiasm to learn Chinese.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Boost
Continuing
Enormous
Enthusiasm
North Korean
Prospects
South Korea
Handicap
Same Story
Stabilize
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We always had power shortages in the country. I was living right next to the border with China, and it was the only country I could compare to my own. When I looked across the river, it was a completely different world - there were no people dying. It looked like a place full of colour, and that's what confused me.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Colour
Compare
Confused
Dying
Power World Me
Border
Different World
Only Country
River
Shortages
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When I was little, I thought my country was the best on the planet. And I grew up singing a song called 'Nothing To Envy.' And I was very proud. In school, we spent a lot of time studying the history of Kim Il-Sung, but we never learned much about the outside world, except that America, South Korea, Japan are the enemies.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Envy
Japan
Outside World
South Korea
Best Time History
Enemies
Studying
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Many Chinese criticize me not only on Baidu but on Facebook. Some say, do you think Chinese authorities were stupid enough not to realize you were a North Korean defector? If they read my book, they'd understand. I did my best to escape. I think it's all a miracle. It's not because Chinese policemen were stupid enough to believe my fake story.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Criticize
Fake
Miracle
North Korean
Policemen
Authorities
Escape
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It was very shocking for me to read newspapers that openly criticised the government in South Korea. That is impossible in North Korea and almost impossible in China. I was really impressed, and I became addicted to reading the news and watching the media so I could learn about the world. North Koreans would be stunned if they experienced this.
Lee Hyeon-Seo /
Impressed
Newspapers
North Korea
Shocking
South Korea
Stunned
Experienced
Openly
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Lee Hyeon-Seo Quotes - Page 2

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