March 29, 2024

Ask A North Korean

Your chance to ask questions to North Koreans about life growing up in the DPRK

Ask a North Korean: What I learned from visiting a DPRK restaurant abroad

Ask a North Korean: What I learned from visiting a DPRK restaurant abroad

A defector writes about his surreal meal at a North Korean restaurant in Laos and how it led him to reflect on his life

Ask a North Korean: What I learned from visiting a DPRK restaurant abroad
Joshua Kim December 15, 2023
Ask A North Korean: Are there private academies and tutors in the DPRK?

Ask A North Korean: Are there private academies and tutors in the DPRK?

North Koreans are passionate about education, and like in South Korea, a fever for private instruction has taken hold

Ask A North Korean: Are there private academies and tutors in the DPRK?
Jin December 8, 2023
Settling in Seoul: What do you think about critics of North Korean defectors?

Settling in Seoul: What do you think about critics of North Korean defectors?

A DPRK escapee talks about encountering people who question his testimony and how he learned to embrace his past

Settling in Seoul: What do you think about critics of North Korean defectors?
David November 21, 2023
Ask a North Korean: What are ideological study sessions like?

Ask a North Korean: What are ideological study sessions like?

A defector writes about taking notes for hours to prove her loyalty, memorizing the leader’s speeches and more

Ask a North Korean: What are ideological study sessions like?
Rose November 10, 2023
Ask a North Korean: How do North Koreans think about sexual and gender identity?

Ask a North Korean: How do North Koreans think about sexual and gender identity?

The regime does not acknowledge gay and transgender people, but that does not mean they don’t exist in the DPRK

Ask a North Korean: How do North Koreans think about sexual and gender identity?
Joshua Kim November 2, 2023
Ask a North Korean: Do North Koreans believe in God?

Ask a North Korean: Do North Koreans believe in God?

A DPRK escapee writes about the fatal consequences citizens face if they are found to worship the wrong religion

Ask a North Korean: Do North Koreans believe in God?
Rose October 17, 2023
Ask a North Korean: What did you think when you saw Kim Jong Un’s daughter?

Ask a North Korean: What did you think when you saw Kim Jong Un’s daughter?

The young girl has joined her father at multiple events, and it’s clear that she’s far from a normal North Korean child

Ask a North Korean: What did you think when you saw Kim Jong Un’s daughter?
Jin October 5, 2023
Ask a North Korean: What is it like to serve in North Korea’s army reserves?

Ask a North Korean: What is it like to serve in North Korea’s army reserves?

All men must enlist in local forces in case of the outbreak of war, and training is often brutal and unpredictable

Ask a North Korean: What is it like to serve in North Korea’s army reserves?
Joshua Kim September 29, 2023
Settling in Seoul: What a North Korean escapee thinks of South Korean politics

Settling in Seoul: What a North Korean escapee thinks of South Korean politics

DPRK’s ‘revolutionary’ politics left no room for choice, but ROK’s democratic system can be bewildering for defectors

Settling in Seoul: What a North Korean escapee thinks of South Korean politics
Rose September 21, 2023
Ask a North Korean: What do socialism and capitalism mean to you?

Ask a North Korean: What do socialism and capitalism mean to you?

A defector shares what DPRK taught him about equality and how living in South Korea has shaped his views on capitalism

Ask a North Korean: What do socialism and capitalism mean to you?
David September 15, 2023
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