A group of Koreans dumps water bottles loaded with rice, medicine and USB drives into the sea on the North Korean border. They hope that the information loaded into those USBs can spark some sort of revolution in the North.
Less than a month ago, President Donald Trump haphazardly declared that he “ fell in love ” with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. In a much less zealous tone, Seoul has also taken a positive approach: A giant banner of Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in has been draped over Seoul City Hall for months and the city is covered with promises of peace.
Certainly, there’s nothing wrong with holding out hope for change. But in strange, unprecedented times like these, it’s easy to forget about the people suffering in North Korea.
Jung Gwang-il doesn’t have the luxury of forgetting. He’s a North Korean defector who has suffered the worst of the Kim regime. He now lives in Seoul and heads a scrappy human rights organization called No Chain for North Korea.
Jung and other defectors travel to a small island along the border with North Korea twice a month. I’ve ridden along with them more than once now. Each time, they package hundreds of USB flash drives and pounds of rice into recycled water bottles, then dump them into the sea, letting the currents take them north.
I’ve gotten to know Jung and his organization for a little over a year now. I’ve been to his house, I’ve ridden in his car, I’ve heard his self-made remixes of rap songs and seen pictures of his children.
