Liberty In North Korea

LIBERTY IN NORTH KOREA'S MAIN PURPOSE IS TO WORK ALONGSIDE THE NORTH KOREAN PEOPLE TO ACCELERATE CHANGE BY SUPPORTING AND EMPOWERING NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES, AND CHANGING THE WAY THE WORLD SEES NORTH KOREA.

CHANGING THE NARRATIVE ON NORTH KOREA: NORTH KOREA IS MORE THAN DICTATORS AND NUCLEAR WEAPONS. WHEN NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES SHARE THEIR VOICES, THEY CHALLENGE THE REGIMES PORTRAYAL OF AN UNCHANGING AND MONOLITHIC COUNTRY, INSTEAD HIGHLIGHTING THE HUMANITY AND DYNAMISM OF NORTH KOREAN PEOPLE. CHANGING THE NARRATIVE TO FOCUS ON THE PEOPLE, NOT MISSILES, IS CRUCIAL TO ACCELERATING PROGRESS ON THIS ISSUE AND MOBILIZING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY. IN 2021, WE RELEASED FIVE NEW VIDEOS AND SERIES, AND HAD OVER 2.7 MILLION VIEWS ON OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL. THE ORGANIZATION LAUNCHED AN ADVOCACY CAMPAIGN THAT RESULTED IN 2,022 LETTERS BEING SENT TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS. 144 RESCUE TEAMS LOCATED IN 18 COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD WORKED TO CHANGE THE NARRATIVE IN THEIR LOCAL COMMUNITIES, AND OUR NEW RESCUE TEAM CERTIFICATE PROGRAM HELPS MEMBERS SIGNIFY THEIR IMPACT AND EXPERIENCE ON RESUMES AND SCHOOL APPLICATIONS. IN SOUTH KOREA, WE COLLABORATED WITH RADIO FREE ASIA TO PRODUCE A SERIES HIGHLIGHTING THE EVERYDAY LIVES OF NORTH KOREANS LIVING IN SOUTH KOREA, WHICH HAD OVER 82,000 VIEWS. WE ALSO LAUNCHED A NEW CO-CREATORS AND ACTION JANGMADANG PROGRAM, WHICH REACHED OVER 175,000 PEOPLE AND HELD 11 EVENTS. THE ORGANIZATION PLANNED AND HOSTED AN INTERNATIONAL WOMENS DAY EVENT WHICH HAD 47 IN-PERSON ATTENDEES AND HAS BEEN SEEN ONLINE OVER 245,000 TIMES. THE ORGANIZATION CONTINUES TO WORK WITH INTERNATIONAL MEDIA TO INFLUENCE THE WAY NORTH KOREA IS REPORTED ON, BRINGING ATTENTION TO THE STORIES OF THE NORTH KOREAN PEOPLE AND THE IMPORTANT WAYS THEY ARE CHANGING THEIR COUNTRY. WE WERE FEATURED, CITED AND QUOTED 57 TIMES IN 2021, AND THREE OF OUR FORMER ADVOCACY FELLOWS WERE FEATURED IN MAJOR MEDIA. THE ORGANIZATION ALSO PLAYED A PART IN 22 RADIO BROADCASTS THAT WENT INTO NORTH KOREA. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE WAYS IN WHICH WE ARE CHANGING THE NARRATIVE, VISIT HTTPS://WWW.LIBERTYINNORTHKOREA.ORG/ANNUAL-REPORT-2021#CHANGING-THE-NARRATIVE.

RESCUE AND RESETTLEMENT SUPPORT: IN 2021, COVID-19 CONTINUED TO IMPACT RESCUE ROUTES. THERE WERE UNPRECEDENTED BORDER LOCKDOWNS, SURVEILLANCE, AND RESTRICTIONS ON MOVEMENT AS CHINA IMPLEMENTED A ZERO-COVID POLICY, IMPOSING TIGHT RESTRICTIONS ON DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL. QR CODES, PROOF OF VACCINATION, AND IN SOME AREAS, EVEN A PERMIT WAS REQUIRED TO TRAVEL. AS A RESULT, IT HAS BEEN ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE FOR NORTH KOREANS TO TRAVEL THROUGH CHINA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA TO REACH SAFE RESETTLEMENT IN OTHER COUNTRIES. THE ORGANIZATION CONTINUED TO MONITOR THE SITUATION OF NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES WHO NEED ASSISTANCE AND WORKED CLOSELY WITH PARTNERS ON THE GROUND TO CONDUCT RECONNAISSANCE MISSIONS TO FIND NEW, VIABLE ROUTES AND METHODS TO HELP NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES IN THEIR ESCAPE. IN 2021, THE WE WERE ABLE TO HELP ONE YOUNG NORTH KOREAN MAN SAFELY ESCAPE (*NOT THROUGH OUR USUAL RESCUE ROUTES) AND RESETTLE IN THE UNITED STATES. THE ORGANIZATION ALSO SUPPORTED THREE NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES DURING THEIR PROCESSING IN SOUTHEAST ASIA. IN THE UNITED STATES, WE WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE SUPPORT TO MORE THAN 40 NORTH KOREANS, WHICH INCLUDED 47 HOME VISITS, 2 EMERGENCY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS, AND THE DELIVERY OF MORE THAN 30 CARE PACKAGES. THE ORGANIZATION ALSO FORMED A NEW COALITION OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND RESOURCES IN THE GREATER LOS ANGELES AREA THAT WILL SUPPORT NORTH KOREANS FOR YEARS TO COME. IN SOUTH KOREA, THE ORGANIZATION SUPPORTED 188 NORTH KOREANS, WHICH INCLUDED 16 HOME VISITS, 2 EMERGENCY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS, AND THE DELIVERY OF 16 CARE PACKAGES. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON OUR RESCUE AND RESETTLEMENT SUPPORT PROGRAMS, VISIT HTTPS://WWW.LIBERTYINNORTHKOREA.ORG/ANNUAL-REPORT-2021#REFUGEE-RESCUES-RESETTLEMENT.

CAPACITY BUILDING: ONE OF OUR BIGGEST OPPORTUNITIES MOVING FORWARD IS TO GO BEYOND RESCUE AND RESETTLEMENT SUPPORT AND TO INVEST IN THE CAPACITY OF NORTH KOREAN DEFECTORS AS AGENTS OF CHANGE. WHEN NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES SUCCESSFULLY RESETTLE IN FREEDOM, THEY BECOME SOME OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE AGENTS OF CHANGE ON THIS ISSUE. MANY MAINTAIN CONTACT WITH THEIR HOME COMMUNITIES, SENDING MONEY AND OUTSIDE INFORMATION BACK TO THEIR FAMILIES, ACCELERATING CHANGE WITHIN NORTH KOREA. NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES ALSO HAVE THE UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE THEIR STORIES, INSIGHTS, AND PERSPECTIVES ON THE GLOBAL STAGE, EDUCATING AUDIENCES, ADVOCATING FOR THE ISSUE, AND MOBILIZING INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT. IN 2021, THE ORGANIZATION EMPOWERED PILOTED TWO NEW PROGRAMS, ONE IN SOUTH KOREA AND ONE IN THE UNITED STATES, WHICH EMPOWERED 75 NORTH KOREANS. IN SOUTH KOREA, ENGLISH LANGUAGE ABILITY IS CRITICAL FOR BOTH EDUCATIONAL AND CAREER OPPORTUNITIES. IN RESPONSE TO THIS NEED, LAST YEAR WE DEVELOPED AND LAUNCHED A NEW ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROGRAM IN SOUTH KOREA. OVER TWO SEMESTERS (SUMMER + FALL), 72 VOLUNTEER ENGLISH CONVERSATION SPENT A GRAND TOTAL OF MORE THAN 770 HOURS OF STUDYING ENGLISH WITH 71 NORTH KOREAN STUDENTS. IN THE UNITED STATES, WE PILOTED A MENTORSHIP PROGRAM THAT SUPPORTED NORTH KOREANS IN THEIR PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. THE INITIAL ITERATION CONNECTED 4 MENTEES WITH FOUR MENTORS WORKING IN THE FIELDS OF COMPUTER SCIENCE, COUNSELING AND THERAPY, AND FINANCE AND ACCOUNTING. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON OUR CAPACITY BUILDING PROGRAMS, VISIT HTTPS://WWW.LIBERTYINNORTHKOREA.ORG/ANNUAL-REPORT-2021#EMPOWERING-AGENTS-OF-CHANGE.