Ji Seong-ho

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Ji Seong-ho in January 2018
Korean spelling
Hangeul 지성 호
Hanja 池 成 鎬
Revised
Romanization 		Ji Seongho
McCune-
Reischauer 		Chi Sŏngho

Ji Seong-ho (* 1982 in North Korea ) is a South Korean politician and North Korean refugee . In the parliamentary elections in South Korea in 2020 , he was elected to the Gukhoe via the party list as a member of the Mirae-hanguk party , the satellite party of the larger Mirae-tonghap party .

biography

Ji is believed to have been born in 1982 near Haengyŏng Concentration Camp . In his youth he regularly stole coal from trains and tried to trade it for food in the markets. On March 7, 1996, on one of these trips on a train, he stole coal with his mother and sister, but lost consciousness while jumping from one car to another and fell through a gap between the cars. He was seriously injured as a result. He nearly lost his leg and three fingers on his left hand. An operation lasting more than four hours was performed without anesthesia. No attempt was made to save his left hand and the doctors decided to remove it completely. Ji's father, who had previously been an ardent supporter of the Labor Party of Korea , changed his mind after the incident. It took Ji ten months to recover reasonably well.

Ji once accidentally crossed the border into the People's Republic of China in search of food. When he returned, he was arrested, tortured, and his crutches were taken away. He claims he was tortured worse because of his injury.

Ji's mother and sister fled North Korea in 2004. In 2006, he and his brother fled and crossed the Tumen into China. Ji almost drowned in the river. His father tried to enter China the same way, but was caught and tortured to death.

Living in South Korea

Upon arrival, Ji converted to Christianity and founded Now, Action, Unity, Human Rights (NAUH). He has initiated various projects to help North Koreans who are still in the north and those who have fled to the south.

In December 2014, Ji spoke at the House of Commons . In 2018, Ji was one of President Donald Trump's guests of honor at the State of the Union Address .

On April 15, 2020, he was elected as a member of the Gukhoe and belongs to the committee alongside Thae Yong-ho as one of currently two former North Koreans.

Web links

Commons : Ji Seong-ho  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Ji Seong-ho: Living with disability in North Korea . In: The Guardian . December 30, 2014, ISSN  0261-3077 ( theguardian.com [accessed May 4, 2020]).
  2. ^ North Korean Defector-Turned-Radio Broadcaster Reveals Cruel Treatment: Hand, Leg Removed Without Anesthesia. Retrieved May 4, 2020 .
  3. ↑ North Korean defectors hope life will be better without 'Dear Leader'. Retrieved May 4, 2020 .
  4. ^ Refugee group sends leaflets to North Korea. Retrieved May 4, 2020 .
  5. ^ Ji Seong-ho interviews. In: Freedom Collection. Retrieved May 4, 2020 .
  6. ↑ Julian Ryall: North Korea's disappeared: regime 'performs experiments on disabled people before leaving them to die' . December 11, 2014, ISSN  0307-1235 ( telegraph.co.uk [accessed May 4, 2020]).
  7. ^ Nancy Cook: Trump offers same policies in new bipartisan packaging. Retrieved May 4, 2020 .
  8. ^ Former High-Ranking North Korean Defector Wins South Korean Parliament Seat. Retrieved May 4, 2020 .
Note: This article places the family name before the person's first name. This is the usual order in Korean. Ji is the family name here, Seong-ho is the first name.
personal data
SURNAME Ji, Seong-ho
ALTERNATIVE NAMES 지성 호 (Korean, Hangeul); 池 成 鎬 (Korean, Hanja); Chi Seongho (Revised Romanization); Chi Sŏngho (McCune-Reischauer)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION North Korean defector, South Korean politician and activist
DATE OF BIRTH 1982
PLACE OF BIRTH North Korea