9/7/21, 12:15 PM Yeonmi Park Talks About Growing up in North Korea

North Korean Defector Explains What It Was

Like To Grow Up Thinking Kim Jong-il Was 'A
God'
Harrison Jacobs  Apr 10, 2014, 11:00 PM

Youtube Screenshot

Yeonmi Park grew up in North Korea, under the watchful eye of then-leader
Kim Jong-il. 

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9/7/21, 12:15 PM Yeonmi Park Talks About Growing up in North Korea

Though she escaped with her family when she was 15, it took her years to get
over the intense brainwashing she experienced. In a recent interview with
Australian public broadcasting channel SBS, Park went into unbelievable
detail about growing up in the totalitarian state.

Growing up in North Korea, according to Park, was like "living in hell." She describes constant power
outages, no transportation, and watching classmates and friends disappear without a trace. While that
may be unsurprising, the most interesting part of Park's experience is her admission that she believed
Kim Jong-il to be "a god" who could literally read her mind.

"I had to be careful of my thoughts because I believed Kim Jong-il could read

my mind. Every couple of days someone would disappear," Park said.

She and her family eventually escaped North Korea, crossing the border into
China in the dead of winter. After several hard years in China, Park and her
family traveled to Mongolia with the help of South Korean missionaries. Even
then, she feared Jong-il.

"This whole time, I was still so brainwashed that I thought Kim Jong-il could
read my mind from afar. Even though I had escaped, I wouldn't let myself
think anything negative about the regime," Park said.

Eventually, the family made it to South Korea, where they were finally
introduced to the Internet and non-censored books. She says it was like finally
seeing "the truth," but that, even in South Korea, it took her three years to get
over the brainwashing. 

Here's the full interview: 

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9/7/21, 12:15 PM Yeonmi Park Talks About Growing up in North Korea

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