The defector who snuck into North Korea to save his mother – Ep. 271

North Korea News Podcast

Kim Kang-woo escaped North Korea in 2016, promising his widowed mother that he would raise the money needed to get her out too. But after brokers were unable to arrange her escape, he decided to take matters into his own hands, crossing the border back into North Korea to attempt a dramatic rescue that reads like something out of a movie script. Washington Post journalist Michelle Ye Hee Lee reported on Kim’s unique story last year and joins the NK News podcast to talk about the immense dangers, costs and heartbreak that North Koreans face when they decide to escape the country. Lee also discusses reporting on North Korea through Tik Tok, Pyongyang’s own experiments with social media, what it was like in Japan when North Korea sent a missile over the country last year and more. Michelle Ye Hee Lee (@myhlee) is the Seoul and Tokyo bureau chief for The Washington Post. About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot (@JaccoZed) exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.