Voice of Freedom: Meeting a North Korean refugee-turned-human rights writer in India

NEW DELHI: Ms Songmi Han, who escaped from a life of desperate poverty in North Korea at the age of 18 and later auto-biographed “Greenlight to Freedom: A North Korean Daughter’s Search for Her Mother & Herself’” in South Korea, is visiting India to share traumatic experience of her life.

In the book, she narrates about a life of dire hardship, domestic abuse and gruelling hours of physical labour in the solitary nation. Following in her mother’s footsteps, who had escaped from North Korea in 2005, six years later Ms Songmi Han decided to take the risk and escape the country.

The Korean Cultural Centre India, together with India International Centre, will host a ‘book concert’ event under the theme of ‘Voice of Freedom’, by inviting Ms Songmi Han and other human rights writers and activists from Korea.

The event will be held on July 24th and 25th at the Korean Cultural Centre India and India International Centre in New Delhi. Apart from Ms Songmi Han, who will present her book, “Greenlight to Freedom: A North Korean Daughter’s Search for Her Mother & Herself”, other . speakers at the event include, Casey Lartigue, who co-authored the book with Songmi Han and is currently serving as the Chairman of ‘Freedom Speakers International’, an incorporated association; Eunkoo Lee, who is the acting co-representative of Freedom Speakers International; and Hyoshim Maeng, who is affiliated with the same corporation.

“Greenlight to Freedom: A North Korean Daughter’s Search for Her Mother & Herself” is Songmi Han’s autobiographical story written in English and narrates her experience of a life in extreme poverty and difficulty while living in North Korea.

Her story captures the lives of several others in the country who have no choice of escape from the reclusive nation. Freedom Speakers International, to which she belongs, is an organization that carries out various campaign activities to improve the human rights of North Korean defectors, especially by helping them with English educational activities and raising their voices for true freedom.

At the event to be held at India International Centre on July 25th, prominent Indian personalities from distinct fields including Dr. Anthony Raju, President of All India Council Of Human Rights, Liberties & Social Justice (AICHLS); Ms. Anjali Bhardwaj, the co-convenor of National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI); Dr. Ramesh Chand Sharma, Former Principal of Motilal Nehru College & eminent Hindi poet; Yuvraj Malik, Director of National Book Trust-India; and Ravi V., the founder of ‘Poets of Delhi’, will also be present.

In a statement Author Songmi Han said, “I am aware that India is a country with a special desire and will for freedom. I’m really looking forward to communicating with the Indian people that I will have the opportunity to meet during this visit.”

Hwang Il Yong, Director of Korean Cultural Centre India said, “The story of the book is very attractive. I hope it will resonate with modern people who live with the risk of self-indulgence and loneliness going beyond too much freedom and help the people of both countries understand each other through the voice of a girl who grows to learn forgiveness and gratitude in the process of pursuing the freedom.”

About the speakers:

Songmi Han: Born in 1993 in Geum-ya gun in North Korea, she escaped to South Korea in 2011 but kept her identity as a North Korean refugee hidden until 2022. She is now a college student studying social welfare in South Korea.

Casey Lartigue Jr.: He is an advocate and activist for educational freedom who has gained recognition in both South Korea and the United States. Based in South Korea, he is the co-founder and chairman of Freedom Speakers International along with South Korean researcher Eunkoo Lee.

Eunkoo Lee: She is the co-founder and chairman of Freedom Speakers International and is an expert and advocate for North Korean human rights, North Korean refugee integration and capacity building. She is currently a PhD candidate majoring in International Relations at Ewha Womans University, South Korea.

Hyoshim Maeng: She fled from North Korea with her parents in June 2018 in search of freedom and human rights. She frequently addresses the plight of disabled individuals in North Korea, sharing her personal experiences as the daughter of a polio survivor who faced constant discrimination.